On 6th March 2018, 8 staff members of ANZ Bank Upper Riccarton Branch, led by their South Island Asian Banking Division Supervisor Nigel He, Branch Manager Tracy Wu and Assistant Manager Mr Tang, made a trip to FGS South Island to carry out house cleaning for the Temple. This kind of community service has been the noble tradition, known as “Paint NZ Blue”, practised by ANZ Bank for all these years. Officers and staffs of the bank will choose a day out of their busy schedule to carry out community service to make the community a better place to live in. This year they have chosen to carry out house cleaning for FGS South Island with the noble intention of maintaining the Temple in a solemn state, and in the process, planting the seeds of happiness, creating good affinity and cultivating Dharma wisdom for themselves.
The Bank volunteers started the day at 9.00 am and finished at 3.00 pm. Their activities included cleaning of ponds, lawn mowing, glass cleaning, tidying up library, vacuuming and mopping of floors, and wall hanging of artworks. The volunteers handled each job with utmost dedication and their attitude drew praises from everyone. For instance, they did not stop when it rained while they were carrying out lawn mowing. Instead, they persisted and continued to complete the work in the rain.
Nigel He was full of praises for FGS for the clean and well maintained Temple. He recalled how he immediately volunteered his service when informed of the proposed house cleaning activity at FGS South Island. Despite the fact that he has to work overtime at the bank after completion of the house cleaning, Nigel was still grateful for the opportunity to volunteer his service to the Temple.
Tracy Wu remarked that she felt honoured to be able to work as a volunteer in FGS South Island and that through this activity, she managed to have a better understanding of FGS and Humanistic Buddhism. As for the “3 Good Deeds, 4 Givings” teaching expounded by Venerable Master Hsing Yun, Tracy found it to be very practical and promised to benefit her colleagues by sharing the teaching with them.
Before bidding farewell, BLIA South Island Vice President Lih-son Ding, on behalf if temple, thanked the volunteers for their services, and took them for a guided tour of the Temple. The volunteers were also gifted with souvenir, calendar and Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s word of wisdom . Finally, Ding wished everyone to return home with Happiness, Good Fortune and Dharma Wisdom.