by Cassidy Peña
Brooklyn Young Women’s Region Leader
After being appointed the Brooklyn young women’s division (YWD) region leader in April, I began hosting Lotus Lounges, a young women’s activity, to get to know the young women in my region. I started by cold emailing the membership list before honing in on those with active subscriptions. This approach brought out so many youth who might be engaged in their district but not at region activities. Meeting them through this activity has helped me identify several members for Byakuren and brought out many to region activities. The gatherings have been very informal, with snacks and cozy lighting. We study together and talk openly about our lives. Through this effort, I learned that the young women of Brooklyn, especially those who don’t often come to activities, just want to connect with others.
At last month’s leaders meeting, we talked about fresh ideas for sharing Buddhism with youth. Someone mentioned the Ikeda Center’s Dialogue Nights, and so we decided to hold our own. We held our very first just two weeks later!
Based on what I had learned from the Lotus Lounge activity, I knew we needed plenty of time for casual dialogue. The bright lights of the center can feel a little formal, so the small group dialogue portion was held outside, and I decorated the patio with string lights—trying to emulate the cozy feel of the Lotus Lounges.
Knowing the struggles of Brooklyn youth, the theme was fulfilling careers. We invited three panelists from different career paths to share their experiences and answer questions. Once we moved to the patio, we broke up into small groups. When it was time to wind down, we almost couldn’t get people to leave because they were so engaged in dialogue. We had 18 youth in attendance, seven of whom were guests! One guest missed gongyo, so afterward his sponsor and I chanted with him. Attendees said the topic was on point, and having space to open up about their lives was exactly what they needed. Our upcoming dialogue night topics include family harmony, goal setting and love. We plan to bring more youth into the brainstorming and organizing process to let them take the lead.
Finally, the YWD of Brooklyn are determined to run side by side with our women’s division members to have many “Peace in Miniature” talks throughout the region! Knowing that peace starts in our immediate environment, the women’s and young women’s members of Brooklyn are determined to create a flow of sustainable peace in our land!
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