407 Hunter Avenue
City Island, New York 10464-1332
(917) 682-0645 • pacogenkoji@gmail.com
December 7, 2011
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
This coming year, from January 4th through the 23rd, I will be traveling to India
and Nepal with my teacher Roshi Bernard Tetsugen Glassman. For those of you
who know me and have followed my spiritual path, you know that these
pilgrimages are part of the journey and part of the practice. For those of you
who are new to this, consider this an invitation to follow and support me on this
journey.
These pilgrimages are intended to deepen our practice as we walk in the steps of
the Buddha. We will explore the roots and current practice of Socially Engaged
Buddhism and Hinduism at their source lead by Zen Master Bernie Glassman
and Dharmacharya Shantum Seth.
Our tradition has always included Dana or begging as part of our practice to
continue our work and to support our spiritual growth through pilgrimages and
retreats. In this, we incorporate the Mala or prayer beads assigning to each bead
the names of donors who support us on our journey. I am asking for your
financial support so that I can travel to India and Nepal and take you with me on
one of my Mala beads along with your intentions. The size of the donation
matters less than having as many of my friends and family indicate their
support.
As an update of what I have been doing, The Hudson River Peacemaker-House
of One People Sendho continues to meet weekly in Yonkers. I continue an
interfaith approach to Zen practice and as such work with Christian groups in
the South Bronx. For the last two years, I have shared a project with Sensei
Melanie Chong. Melanie and I began to shift the culture in a traditional health
club by introducing mind, body, spirit, awareness. My commitment to socially
engaged Buddhism has taken me to Porto Alegre, Brazil to work among the poor
of the Favelas and into the streets of Detroit where Roshi Grover Genro Gauntt
and I conducted a four-day street retreat. This past summer, I had the privilege
of ordaining Ovidio Waldemar, my host in Brazil, Daiken Nelson, my student of
five years, and Joaquin Salazar, who works in the fields of the Dominican
Republic extending our social action practice to this Caribbean nation.
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December 7, 2011
Your generosity is requested for this trip and our ongoing works in socially
engaged Buddhism that, as you can see from my brief report, includes everyone.
Please send your donation to the Hudson River Peacemaker Center-House of
One People either via USPS mail to: 407 Hunter Avenue, City Island New York
10464. Or, use Paypal using my e-mail address: pacogenkoji@gmail.com, or via our website, www.hrpchoop.org
If you wish to contribute anonymously, you can do so by sending a donation with a note indicating that this is for Paco’s account and that you prefer to remain anonymous to: Zen Peacemakers, c/o Laura Smith, P.O. Box 460, Sunderland, MA 01375. (laurasmith@peacemakercenter.com).
The Hudson River Peacemaker Center is a duly registered not-for-profit and contributions are deductible as permitted by law.
Thank you and many blessings.
I bow to you and am grateful,
Paco
Sensei Francisco Genko-ji Lugoviña