Denen Day Service is a hospital-affiliated day-care center for the elderly, owned by Wang Shao-ying, husband of Tzu Chi commissioner Wang Mei-ling. Tzu Chi people went to pay a visit on January 31. Mei-ling opened by introducing the group to the residents as Tzu Chi volunteers from Taiwan who now reside in Japan. The volunteers brightened up the atmosphere with their enthusiastic performances of Taiwanese aborigine dances. The Denen residents laughed and joined in with their waving hands and feet.

One moving scene was when Sister Mei-ling told the audience with tears in her eyes that she wanted to dedicate a Tzu Chi song which they were about to perform to her mother-in-law. Her mother-in-law, sitting with other elderly residents, exclaimed joyfully, "To me? Really? Thank you, thank you so much!" When the song was finished, Mei-ling hugged her mother-in-law, and other volunteers went to hug other residents, who hugged them back with tears and smiles.

Sister Mei-ling's mother-in-law was very excited about the performance. "She's been married to our family for 30 years, but I've never seen her dance. She did very well, even though she was the shortest!" What could be more affirmative than being praised by one's mother-in-law? The old lady continued, "Since Mei-ling joined Tzu Chi, she has been smiling more and has a better temper. I hope she can volunteer every day!"

Philippines

This is the fourth year that Tzu Chi people have sold flowers on Valentine's Day for charity. In addition to roses, this year Tzu Chi Collegiate Association members also sold home-made chocolate in three different flavors. They sold 3,078 roses and 134 boxes of chocolate.

Volunteers started preparing for the sale on February 10. They planned everything out, from choosing flowers, packaging, making bows, to the routes for delivering flowers. They paid such close attention to details because they hoped to send the best to the kind people who would buy flowers from them.

Volunteer Ye Zhu-jun said that her team was responsible for checking to see that every bouquet was well arranged with the right number of roses and that the packaging and the bows were done perfectly since they hoped that the recipients would be delighted. Over 100 volunteers were devoted to the work in a spirit of unison and cooperation.

On February 13, people worked through the night to finish over 300 bouquets of flowers. Then other volunteers took the flowers to their own homes so that they would be able to leave early the next morning to deliver the flowers on time. Volunteer Huang Li-xia laughed happily when she discovered that someone had put her name on the recipient list.

The next morning, February 14, a volunteer caused quite a stir among the employees at a bank that had just opened. They looked at the recipient with admiration. Another volunteer had to wait an hour to deliver flowers to a recipient who was taking a bath. Some people who ordered flowers did not know that the Tzu Chi people could pack the flowers so beautifully; they immediately phoned the Tzu Chi office to order more. Some volunteers and recipients were surprised to discover that they were old friends who had not seen each other in a long time.

Vietnam

On January 24, 2006, local Tzu Chi volunteers went to visit some poor people in Tien Giang Province, a few hundred kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City.

The first person they visited was Nguyen Thanh Hong, who suffered from a malignant tumor on her head. The tumor started growing five years ago, but it could not be cured even though the family spent all their money on two surgeries. Finally her husband and her son threw her out of their home. She ended up living with her sister in a small hut. Her sister made a living by buying pineapples grown by neighbors and selling them in a market.

Ms. Ruan received a seven-day supply of medicine at a Tzu Chi free clinic three weeks earlier. She so valued the medicine that instead of taking it the prescribed three times a day, she only took it once a day. Therefore, when she was visited by the volunteers, she still had not finished the medicine.

They visited eight-year-old Mai Thong Dong, who suffered from thalassemia, a congenital blood disease. In April 2005, he came down with dengue fever and was sent to a hospital. There the doctor determined that his pancreas had to be removed, but the family could not afford the operation. Now the boy was malnourished and in bad health, and he needed a blood transfusion every 25 days, but the cost again placed a heavy burden on the family. The provincial Red Cross promised to find other people to donate blood for him, and Tzu Chi committed itself to providing nutritional supplements.

The last person they visited was 15-year-old Cao Van Vu Linh, who used to suffer from abnormal enlargement of the pancreas. His pancreas was removed in 1998, and his blood condition had been improving ever since. The teenager only needed to go back to the hospital for regular checkups every year. If necessary, the doctor would give him a blood transfusion. Tzu Chi helped him with nutritional supplements and arranged for him to undergo regular checkups.

The Dominican Republic

On February 11, over 10 Tzu Chi volunteers visited the Casa Rosada orphanage in the capital, Santo Domingo. They delivered four wardrobes so the children could have a place to put their clothes.

The orphanage has 50 children carrying the AIDS virus, and there are 15 staff members. One volunteer gave Sister Sol Carmen, director of the orphanage, a copy of Master Cheng Yen's Still Thoughts, so that she could have a better understanding about Master Cheng Yen's ideas of Great Love and gratitude.

Australia

On January 1, 2006, a wildfire fanned by hot winds swept through Junee, New South Wales. The fire destroyed eight houses, killed 15,000 sheep, 88 cattle and one person, and injured one person. Another fire in Gosford caused a nearby highway to be sealed off for one day. The provincial government declared these natural disaster areas and issued AUD$10,000 (US$7,394) to each victimized family.

When Tzu Chi people in Sydney saw the news on TV, they immediately contacted the New South Wales emergency rescue center and indicated their willingness to help. Finally, on January 16, they received a list of four victimized families in Gosford, and they went to visit them the following day.

Gosford covers a large area, so the volunteers had problems locating the victimized families. They finally went to the county information center to get help. The staff members there were very helpful and gave them a detailed map, marking the roads to these victimized families with a colored pen.

They first visited the Bryant family. When they saw a brand-new house, they thought that they had made a mistake. Mr. And Mrs. Bryant came out of the house and told them that their insurance company had rented it for their family until their damaged house was completed.

When they went to inspect the house, they found it completely ruined. Trent Conuana, a young Qantas Airline pilot who lived next door, came out of his damaged house. The fire had destroyed everything he had, but the insurance company and the government had helped him to get through the hardship, and he kindly declined Tzu Chi's help.

The third family was David and Jennifer Longhton. Dave worked in construction. On the day of the fire, the family was in Sydney and all of Dave's construction tools were in his car in the garage. Fortunately, a neighbor helped to put out the fire and his house was not damaged, but the garage and car were destroyed. To buy a brand-new set of tools would cost him AUD$80,000 (US$60,000), which the Tzu Chi people were unable to give him immediately.

The last couple was Uwe and Rawandee Oberlander. Uwe came from Germany, and Rawandee was a Thai. She told the volunteers excitedly that she had prayed to find a Buddhist rosary her father had left to her, and incredibly she found it among the ashes. They now also lived in a house rented by their insurance company. However, their insurance coverage did not include cleaning up their damaged house, and the couple hoped Tzu Chi could help them. On their way home, the volunteers reminded each other to examine their own home insurance coverage.

Canada

On January 6, 2006, a few days before Chinese New Year, five vans left the Tzu Chi Canada branch office and drove to the Vancouver Native Health Society (VNHS). The non-profit organization, founded in 1991, provides medical and community services to native people.

Tzu Chi people went there to distribute relief goods to a VNHS unit called "Positive Outlook." The unit treats 200 people living with HIV/AIDS in order to give them hope, as the name indicates. Services include meals, risk management, residence, psychological counseling, and medical care. There are medical professionals and social workers on site, and they cooperate with two major general hospitals in the city in case of any emergency.

Upon their arrival, the volunteers were greeted warmly by the unit nurses. The volunteers put up Tzu Chi flags, Tzu Chi logos, red lanterns, white tablecloths, and flowers to create a Chinese New Year ambiance.

The winter relief distribution was held in the afternoon to accommodate the lifestyle of Eastside residents. The volunteers prepared coffee, tea, and sweet desserts. At around two in the afternoon, people gradually began to come in. They lined up before long tables to receive relief goods and big hugs from the volunteers.

Guatemala

Most of the inhabitants of Palencia, about a 90-minute drive from Guatemala City, are farmers. Recently the road into that area had been paved to help local commerce, but it was still difficult for elderly people to go see a doctor because buses did not pass near their houses.

To make things easier for them, Tzu Chi volunteers held a free medical clinic and distribution of relief supplies for the poor on February 5. An old warehouse was used as the distribution site. They handed out a $100 scholarship to each of five students who had a total grade point average of at least 85 percent. These five students were chosen from the 50 students who received Tzu Chi financial help last year. This year, 60 students received a total of $5,710 in financial aid from Tzu Chi, as well as backpacks, color pens, notebooks, pencils, erasers, and other school supplies.

Volunteers also distributed packs of food--each including 40 pounds of black beans, 25 pounds of rice and 25 pounds of sugar--to 189 needy families.