This is what we were told by our SERVAS day host in Myanmar. In the morning from 7 to 11, the monks walk around collecting alms -- usually this is prepared food. Monks usually eat when they wake up, then again before noon, and not after that. If they are running an orphanage, they are collecting food for themselves and the children. Nuns collect food twice a week -- they get food that is not prepared and prepare it themselves. With a country that is mostly Buddhist, this gets a lot of people in the habit of giving.
Our host was on the founding committee for an orphanage about 6 hours away from Yangon (Rangoon). She has put her own money in, and collected money from others. Small businesses nearby pledge (and give) about a dollar (US) a month. Much of the expenses are for formula for babies.
Who are the orphans? The orphanage that we visited today near Yangon has mostly boys from the terrible 2008 typhoon that killed 200,000 to 300,000 people. Other children might have parents from the many boarder areas who are sending them away to get them out of the way of armed conflict. Others are truly abandoned babies -- sometimes with very poor parents.
Our host took us to visit the "Twilight center" -- a non-profit residential program for the elderly. It had been started when an undertaker realized that the death of one individual could leave others vulnerable who had been cared for by that person. Our host also helped support this program. There were about 40 elderly people cared for in this facility -- it would not be up to US standards, but it was clean and tidy -- and smelled good.
Our host also showed us pictures of two wells that she supported. She went to her old university friends to gather funds for the wells.
And, speaking of water, it is really hot here, and there are covered ceramic pots of water in many public places for drinking. I am not saying that this is clean water, especially if you drink out of the provided shared cup, but generosity has provided water, and apparently even more water spots are available when it gets even hotter.
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