Kechara Soup Kitchen & YB Dato’ Seri Mohamad Nazri Bin Abdul Aziz
Dato’ Ruby Khong (President of KSK) and our Guest of Honour, YB Dato’ Seri Mohamad Nazri Bin Abdul Aziz (Minister in Malaysia’s Prime Minister Department).
As Kechara’s Soup Kitchen grows, it continues to grab the attention of kind donors, the press and media. Malaysians from all walks of life have been continuously lending a hand in any way that they can. Initially, volunteers and donors came forward to offer their help and donations because they were touched by the warm care KSK showed towards the homeless and urban poor. Now, after years of operation, KSK has managed to establish a trust between themselves and the homeless people of KL… this is something that is difficult to gain, and many donors recognize that.
With the support of so many generous contributors, KSK is fortunate as it always has food to distribute. Corporate and individual sponsors have been kindly giving from within their means through donating essential food items such as rice, cooking oil, biscuits, Milo etc. These food donations kept pouring in as KSK continued to make it into the newspapers and social media. I’m happy to see the public responding!
Gradually, KSK experienced an over-supply of these food items, and so they decided to share them with other NGOs and low-income families in order to lessen their burden. This created the cause for the Food Bank to be formed. How wonderful!
The NGOs and low-income families are interviewed by the KSK team before they are eligible to receive the food items. Once they qualify, KSK will allocate the food items according to the number of family members and their monthly income. So now instead of just distributing food to the homeless, Kechara’s soup kitchen also acts as a collection centre for food items from donors… then on a monthly basis, these food items will then be sent to their respective homes via the KSK van.
On the 23rd May 2012, the Kechara Food Bank was officially launched! The launch was graced by Yang Berhormat Dato’ Seri Nazri Aziz, Minister in Prime Minister’s Department. In his speech, Dato’ Seri Nazri Aziz mentioned that he was very impressed with what KSK was doing to build a better society and providing help to everyone without discrimination. Representatives from various NGOs and a few low-income families were also invited to the event to receive the donation from KSK. I thank YB Dato’ Seri Mohamad very much for joining us at Kechara. I as the spiritual advisor of Kechara am very touched by his presence at our event. With his kind support we are very priviledged to help others.
On the official opening day, 6 NGOs received 50 bags of 10kg rice each while 10 low-income families received 30 bags of 10kg rice each together with cooking oil and biscuits. The NGOs and families can finally breathe a sigh of relief from now on as KSK will be donating food items to them on a monthly basis. I hope this project continues to benefit those in need within the Malaysian community, lessening their burden and bringing more relief for them. This way they can focus on other projects, for example how to help their own organisations to grow so they can benefit even more people. I’m very proud of Kechara’s soup kitchen for being the catalyst to help other organisations grow.. Not only do they help the homeless without discrimination, but they are also now helping other NGOs without discrimination. I feel that this is the way it should be… we help one another to achieve our greater goal, which is to benefit others who are suffering.
This is another service to add to Kechara’s soup kitchen portfolio of services… all thanks to donors who continue to donate as they are happy to see their contribution being put to good use!
Kechara believes in helping the community.
Tsem Rinpoche
Sister Malar (far left) receiving the donation. She is representing Pertubuhan Kebajikan Anak Yatim Mary.
Ustaz Abdullah from Surau Jamal Al-Surur receiving the food items donation.
Food items for those eligible by Kechara’s Food Bank!
I’m happy to see Malaysians having one less thing to worry about at night.
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[…] Kechara Soup Kitchen & YB Dato’ Seri Mohamad Nazri Bin Abdul Aziz […]
[…] help them start their new life, KSK’s Food Bank provided them with many non-perishable food items e.g. rice, sugar, […]
As said in those lovely meaningful quotes:- “Feeding the hungry is said to be a responsibility for every human being who has a heart. Hunger knows no friend but its feeder.” To reach out to the “forgotten faces of KL, KSK volunteers led by officials, has to travel around the busy major streets of the City in areas like Jalan Pudu Lama, Chow Kit, Jln Petaling, Masjid Jamek,Jln kelang, and Jln Brickfields to name a few, to seek them out for the distribution of the thousands of packets of vegetarian wet and dried food to feed the homeless and the hungry-ones. Established in 2006, KSK is a “Brainchild” of our spiritual Guru, H.E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, with the primarily aim of feeding and providing basic medical care for the homeless and needy urban poor of Kuala Lumpur. Of course, KSK has worked tirelessly to help the homeless and hungry needy ones, with kind help from the Media to create awareness for its really good cause! Hearty congratulations to them for their official launching of “Kechara Food Bank” by Yang Berhomat Dato’Seri Nazri Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister Dept., on 23rd May, 2012, another service added up to KSK’s portfolio of services!
There are so many people who have benefitted from what KSK is Malaysia. Hunger is a real problem for many in Malaysia it is not just something on the newspaper it is REAL for some of us.
I have so much respect for Dato Ruby for this brilliant idea of setting up a Food Bank for KSK. True to their motto ‘Hunger knows no barrier’, Dato and her team put into practice what they believe in. Now anyone who is eligible can apply to the Food Bank and will have one less worry knowing there is decent food on the table each day. How wonderful!
I can’t agree with you more Judy that ‘will have one less worry knowing there is decent food on the table each day’. When Rinpoche asked us to start KSK, he said ‘so that no one goes hungry and we know that everyone goes to sleep with a full stomach’.
I proudly say this food bank is a very good idea as many poor families and smaller homes’ plight is not highlighted. KSK not only gives them food supplies but also is the bridge for future sponsors as we highlight their needs too.
I remember Dato Ruby Khong has mentioned that she had doubt on the feasibility of KSK when Rinpoche mentioned this to her many years back (if i remember this correctly). I believe that the initial stage of KSK was tough, donations may have to come from own pockets.
Many years now down the road KSK has over-supply of donations and can now even set up a Food Bank to help re-distributing these foods and daily necessities to the needy.
It is really a long road…an inspiration.
Life is tough without foods, because we need these to have our bodies function. Truly, these beneficiaries have now one less important thing to worry about and can focus their time and energy on other issues that can build/re-build their lives.
Great job, Dato Ruby Khong and your team!
[…] since KSK launched their Food Bank project, KSK has been distributing food items such as biscuits, cooking oil, rice, milo and other food […]