The Lodge has been providing free vegetarian meals to the less-privileged for more than 20 years. -- ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
ON SUNDAY morning, staff at the Singapore Buddhist Lodge, a religious welfare group, found $47,000 - in a stack of $1,000 notes - in its donation box.
They were not unduly surprised. Chairman Lee Bock Guan said the temple in Kim Yam Road has been receiving the cash donation - every month - for almost three years now.
The monthly amount varies, he said, between $40,000 and $50,000. That means the anonymous donor has given some $1.5 million cash to the temple.
'You know it is the same person, because the notes always come in the same, neat stack,' said Mr Lee.
Mr Lee added that the Lodge has no plans to pursue the identity of the mysterious donor because it is obvious the person prefers to stay anonymous.
He added: 'He or she could easily have written a cheque. By donating in cash, this person clearly prefers to be unknown.
'We thank this person but have no interest in discovering his or her identity.'
The Lodge has been providing free vegetarian meals to the less-privileged for more than 20 years.
It spends $210,000 a month on its daily buffet and plans to spend even more, as more people come forward for financial help.
This year, the group also increased its education bursary budget from $1 million to $1.2 million, even as donations dipped by about 20 per cent.
