The Final Countdown-Buddha’s Birthday, Here We Come!
On 16th April, BLIA South Island held the 7th and final preparation meeting for the Buddha’s Birthday Multicultural Blessing Ceremony. The meeting was chaired by BLIA South Island President Mr. Almeric Cheng and Vice-presidents Mei-Hua Chen and Jack Liu, and was attended by committee members, South Island YAD members and volunteers from FGS North Island. In total, 50 people attended the meeting. Venerable Abbess Manshin, Venerable Juexi, Venerable Miaoyu and Venerable Rulian were also present to support the BLIA with their wisdom and vast experience.
During the meeting, each group reported their progress, and in summation:
1. The Administration Group has prepared a list of mobile phone numbers of each volunteer and will be made available at the venue
2. The Ceremony group has confirmation on both the singer for the national anthem and the flag barriers
3. The Publicity Group has finished printing the posters and has confirmation on the media that are coming to report on the event
4. The VIP reception Group has confirmed the numbers of guests who are attending
5. There will be 12 offering groups consisting of 120 volunteers.
6. There will be five performances divided into three sessions
7. The Ticketing Group will adopt BLIA North Island’s idea of having mobile ticketing kiosks
8. The Sound system and Photography Group are prepared and equipped for the event
9. YAD of North Island will help with cleaning the venue
10. The location for first aid has been confirmed
As this was the final meeting before the event, each group began setting their during-the-event responsibilities and tasks into motion.
Venerable Abbess Manshin encouraged each group to utilise the strength of the public, and also become mobile advertisement during the event to promote the message of Humanistic Buddhism to all the visitors.
After the meeting, the Administration, Ceremony and VIP Reception Groups’ had their own meeting to discuss about the event in greater detail. This Buddha’s Birthday Celebration has successfully gathered the force of 150 volunteers from North and South Islands’, and collectively everyone has the attitude of progress as well as hope for a well-rounded event.