| Fifteen
thousand hot meals in five days provided for China Airline
crash victims' families and rescue workers |
 |
Translated by Joe Huang
June 01, 2002
Chinese
Version
"As long as these
victims' families have something to eat and not go hungry, our
efforts are worthwhile!"
Caring for the family members of China Airline
crash victims and for hardworking rescue workers, Tzu Chi volunteers
prepared assorted meals without rest. Seeing the victims' families
eating the meals, the volunteers felt that their efforts were
worthwhile.
At 4 am, shortly after dawn, the loud roar
of gas stoves broke the silence of the night. Tzu Chi volunteer
cooks had already gathered at the Makung air force base on Penghu
Island to begin their work. From May 25 to 29, the volunteers
prepared over fifteen thousand hot meals for victims' families
and rescue workers.
In addition to local Tzu Chi volunteers on
Penghu, Tzu Chi volunteers from Kaohsiung started helping on
May 26, shipping vegetables and cooking supplies to the Makung
air base via air freight. The group leader of volunteer chefs
from Kaohsiung remarked: "As soon as we found out that
our support was needed in Makung, we bought the ingredients
to prepare vegetarian meals. The airline also provided assistance,
allowing volunteers and supplies to arrive smoothly at Makung."
Dedication to helping others
Although many Tzu Chi volunteers in Kaohsiung
had full-time jobs, they immediately applied for leave when
they received news of the need for volunteers. A hospital employee,
Chen Shu-fen, immediately switched shifts with her coworkers.
Beauty parlor owner Kuo Chiu-hsiu, closed her shop. "Penghu
has a limited number of volunteers," she said. "We
will do all that we can to help. Earning a little less money
is not a big deal!"
Since over three thousand meals were needed
each day, the volunteers woke up before four o'clock and headed
to Makung with food and supplies. There they joined with Penghu
volunteers, who drove in from a long distance away, and began
their work.
From dawn to late at night, the cooking sounds
from the stoves were uninterrupted. To provide a wide variety
of choices for the victims' family members and the numerous
rescue workers, the volunteers continuously prepared hot porridge,
noodles, vegetables, rice, buns, and hot soups. "Since
the family members are still emotionally stressed, it is hard
to estimate the number of people at each meal," said experienced
volunteer cook Chou Shui-lien, 65. "So we try to have abundant
food in order to accommodate the needs at all times."
Meals full of genuine kindness
At mealtimes, volunteers attended to family
members, personally serving each dish to them and giving out
fruits and desserts after the meals. A man said, "Tzu Chi
food is full of genuine human kindness, which is very heart-warming."
When people were hungry between meals, they also looked for
food at the Tzu Chi temporary kitchen.
Cooking nonstop for over ten hours each day,
many volunteers suffered burns or cuts. Their hands were patched
with band-aids, their faces red from the hot smoke, and their
clothes drenched from the humid weather.
"As long as these victims' families
have something to eat and not go hungry, our efforts are worthwhile!"
a volunteer said.
