Celebrating 20 Years of Dhammadharini & Strengthening Our Future

Dear friend of Dhammadharini

I hope this message finds you well. I reach out today with a grateful heart, celebrating all we have accomplished together while acknowledging the challenges ahead.

This year marks nearly twenty years since Ayya Tathālokā and friends founded Dhammadharini with the vision of creating a community for Theravāda bhikkhunis. Over these two decades, our Sangha has risen above many challenges, and together, we have achieved many milestones worthy of celebration.

❤️❤️❤️ Celebrating Our Progress

Thanks to your unwavering support and through the dedicated efforts of the Dhammadharini Support Foundation (DDSF) since October 2024, we have made significant progress, including:

• A generous $5,000 donation has substantially replenished the Monastic Medical Fund, alleviating its critical shortfall.
• A single generous donation this February, combined with regular monthly contributions to “Lodgings Dana," has ensured that the monastery’s mortgage is fully covered for the year.
• Thanks to numerous year-end donations, we broke even for 2024. We were able to maintain our financial reserve, which will help us navigate economic uncertainty and ensure that temporary financial hardships do not become crises.
• We are also deeply grateful for Kai’s incredible fundraising efforts in early 2024. With her leadership, we raised over $30,000 in just a few months, including a $10,000 matching grant from a generous donor in the U.S, to purchase a much-needed and long-overdue reliable truck for the Sangha.

🌧🌧🌧 Challenges That Lie Ahead

While these accomplishments are significant, our financial situation remains fragile:

Over the past two years, donations to the General Fund—which covers the basic expenses to keep the monastery and hermitage in safe and sound condition—have dropped to historically low levels, while costs have increased.

Dhammadharini receives donations for general expenses, as well as specific projects, and both are essential.

We recognize that a significant cause of this decline has been a lack of regular communication from the foundation to our broader community. We are committed to changing this and fostering regular communication and engagement. We invite your feedback about how we, as the Dhammadharini Support Foundation, can better support and engage our wider community.

Dhammadharini occupies a truly unique place in the Dhamma landscape, and we have so many plans for sharing the wealth of wisdom that resides at Dhammadharini with the global community, as well as improvements that will make the Dhammadharini a better refuge for all. We are excited about these plans and those who have stepped up to support them - and alongside that, we ask for your help with the basic fundamentals that provide a secure foundation: The less exciting, but essential necessities like paying for insurance and the electric bill - these things are paid from the General Fund, which has become depleted.

🙏🙏🙏 How You Can Help

I humbly request your support in helping the Sangha regain financial stability. Every contribution, no matter the size, makes a meaningful difference.

Please consider setting up a recurring donation—of any amount—to help create a sustainable future. A steady and predictable income stream will allow us to manage our budget wisely and know when we can move forward with long-overdue projects essential to the Sangha’s well-being and mission.

I understand we all live on the edge in these uncertain times, navigating political and economic turmoil. Making an additional contribution may not be as easy as it once was. But this is precisely the time when the Dhamma and the Sangha can be a refuge for us all

By strengthening the Sangha now, we ensure we can continue offering guidance, wisdom, and spiritual refuge to all seeking it. In this turbulent world, let us stand together to support the Sangha so they may continue sharing the Dhamma and spreading loving kindness to all beings in Samsara.

With mettā and deep gratitude,

Upāsika Nuchada Prypiroonrojn

Director of Development

Dhammadharini Support Foundation