Written by Wendy Tsai, Sophie X. Song
Translated by H. B. Qin
Edited by Adriana DiBenedetto
To help uphold community wellness, students from Rosa L. Parks Elementary School in Prince George’s County, Maryland, have been studying remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, on January 23rd, 2021, many local students happily revisited their beloved school hand-in-hand with parents. And again, on a sunny Saturday morning, April 17th, they were back on campus. Both times, they were not to attend in-person classes, but to pick up groceries lovingly prepared by Tzu Chi’s Greater Washington DC Region volunteers.
This food distribution was successfully achieved thanks to the gracious support of Ivania Fields, a social worker at Rosa L. Parks Elementary School. Ivania helped Tzu Chi organize the food distribution, and registered the children and parents who would come to pick up the groceries.
Volunteers arrived early in the morning to unload and organize the pantry staples, and set up a special distribution station to prepare for the children’s arrival. Upon seeing the students at school once more, Ivania expressed her hopes that they would be able to enjoy a smooth transition to in-person learning in the near future.
Many alumni from the University of Maryland, College Park, came to help with the food distribution that day. As the pandemic is still ongoing, all Tzu Chi volunteers wore protective masks as required to ensure everyone’s safety.
With the prolonged effects of the pandemic on one’s livelihood, more love is needed, and therefore, Tzu Chi has endeavored to do more to bring relief to the communities we serve.
