December 31, 2022 will be my last day as the President of Windward Buddhist Temple. It has been a challenging and rewarding five years.
I began my first term in 2018 as we welcomed many people to join us at the temple’s 50th anniversary service and luncheon. We had a new name: Windward Buddhist Temple. This gave the Sangha a boost of energy as we embarked on new activities at the temple and more people began to attend Sunday services. It was not unusual to have 50 people on Sundays enjoying the Dharma together.
Then came March 15, 2020, with the country and city closing any large gathering in its effort to contain the spread of COVID. As Buddhists, we braved the pandemic knowing that nothing is permanent—even the pandemic. If we keep a positive attitude and challenge ourselves to find ways to continue sharing the Dharma, time will pass and so will COVID.
We adopted the government guidelines to keep ourselves safe. Many of us learned new things such as using Zoom on the computer for WBT Board meetings and to participate in virtual Buddhist education sessions. We began to video tape weekly services and share them through YouTube. This allowed us to reach many members, former members, friends, and relatives who do not live in Hawaii as they accessed services from the safety of their homes. We reached people who are now active members of the temple, all because we continued our work to spread the Dharma, in any way we could.
Although my term as President would have ended in December 2020, I agreed to do another term to see WBT through the pandemic with hopes that by the end of 2022 the pandemic would end and WBT could return to “normal”. Although COVID is still evolving and challenging the drug companies to develop new drugs, our Sangha has been back to live services for almost a year which is as close to “normal” for now. (There are 40+ participants at Sunday services!)
I am grateful to my predecessors who kept this temple relevant for its members; to those who educated and supported me in learning about and growing into the role as President; to the dedicated Board and Committee members; and to the many volunteers who work together to make WBT a thriving, warm, welcoming place. To all the people who let me walk along with you on this Nembutsu path, thank you for making the past 5 years memorable ones.
— Prudence Kusano
