Dear fellow Sangha members

You may remember hearing some talk about a ‘Safety Net’ some time ago but if like me you have forgotten exactly what that talk was all about please allow me to refresh your memory.

The Safety Net will be a network within the Bodhicharya London Sangha that will provide support for people in times of personal need when other support is not forthcoming. The support could range from helping someone when they are sick by simply providing practical support like doing the shopping or helping in the garden, it could involve providing emotional support for someone experiencing a difficult time in their life or it could simply be a way for people to have someone to talk to peridocially in a world that often seems so busy, impersonal and lonely at times.

As people interested in Buddha Dharma participating in the Safety Net would provide us with an opportunity to engage with it in a practical, meaningful and beneficial way for all concerned.  The motivation behind the Safety Net is one of Loving Kindness and Compassion for all Sentient Beings joined with the realisation of the Interconnected nature we all share.  The first Paramita or ‘perfection’ that is to be cultivated in the Mahayana tradition is Generosity.  Generosity can take many forms and sometimes it can be more difficult to give of ourselves than of material things but when we do so we realise the instant and long term benefits.  The instant benefit for the helper is the feeling of satisfaction that is gained by helping another in a time of need and the benefit for the recipient is the solving of their problem or the alleviation of their suffering.  The long term benefits are reduced Self-Cherishing, the source of all our disatisfaction and a cultivation of greater and greater Compassion towards all fellow Sentient Beings that in the end brings constant Joy and Satisfaction into our lives and those around us.

Tim has very kindly and painstakingly developed a system that will enable the Safety Net to function, however we firstly need to identify WHO in the group would like to and be potentially able to offer support to others within the group. 

In order for Tim to get the Safety Net off of the ground and onto its feet he needs a few moments of your time to respond to the following questionnaire. The information you provide will be entered into the database Tim has developed that will initially show your location and what you are willing to help with so that it will be easier for those who will coordinate the Safety Net to match people with those who need help or support and put them in contact with one another.

It is also important that we additionally recognise that some people may not wish to be a part of this support network at all (either as a potential helper or as a recipient) which is entirely a personal choice and as such this will be respected. If this is the case we would be grateful if you could indicate this and respond accordingly where asked.

Please EMAIL only the response back to: safetynetreply@...

You can either email the replies or send the document back as an attachment. For the few people Dirk has listed who do not have email a form will be given to them personally.

Do be aware that Tim has set this email address up TEMPORARILY & SOLELY for the handling of the responses to keep his and the Bodhicharya email account free of lots of messages and it will be deleted once he has processed all the information.

Please try to get a reply back by end of March 2009

Thanks for reading,

Tim & Cesare

1        YOUR NAME:

2        YOUR ADDRESS

3        PHONE NUMBERS (list all you wish to share):

4        EMAIL ADDRESS:

5        WHICH GEOGRAPHICAL / RESIDENTIAL LOCATION ARE YOU IN?:

London: Borough

Out of London: County

Other area:

6        Do you attend the Bodhicharya Kairos group (Thursday evening group)

YES                 NO

7        ARE YOU HAPPY TO BE A PART OF THE SUPPORT NETWORK

                             NO                         YES

8        WOULD YOU BE WILLING  / INTERESTED IN HELPING AS A ‘COORDINATOR’ OF THE NETWORK

                                      YES                        NO

9        ARE YOU WILLING TO BE A CONTACT TO OFFER SUPPORT TO SOMEONE

                   YES              NO

IF YES:

LIST OF TYPE OF THINGS THAT COULD BE OFFERED - do be creative / inventive if you think something is missing:

SAY YES OR NO (OR TICK OR ERASE WHERE APPROPRIATE) TO EACH:

PHONING / EMAILING SOMEONE TO CHECK THEY ARE OK?

MEETING SOMEONE / VISITING SOMEONE AT HOME WHO MAY BE ILL / UNABLE TO TRAVEL

DO LOCAL SHOPPING FOR SOMEONE

ARRANGE INTERNET SHOPPING FOR SOMEONE

RESEARCHING SUPPORT SERVICES FOR SOMEONE

ARE YOU A WILLING CAR DRIVER?                       YES                   NO

WOULD YOU POTENTIALLY BE ABLE TO ACCOMPANY SOMEONE TO HOSPITAL APPOINTMENTS

COULD YOU POTENIALLY ASSIST WITH OTHER THINGS WHERE SOMEONE IS NO LONGER ABLE TO MANAGE – E.G.  GARDENING / DECORATING / D.I.Y.

BE A CONTACT FOR NEW PEOPLE TO MEET / WELCOME THEM AT EVENTS / TEACHINGS ETC

ADD YOUR ADDITIONAL COMMENTS / IDEAS AS THIS IS YOUR SAFETY NET: