Excerpt from The Oakland Tribune
Tuesday, September 25, 2001 (Originally in English)

Aulacese Family Donates to Red Cross

Golden Lotus collects $1,750 for disaster relief in NYC, D.C.

By Alex Katz--staff writer

[Oakland] The Golden Lotus restaurant in the downtown area donated its entire take from Monday--US$1,750--to the Red Cross. "We feel it's our duty. It's just our little part of showing our sympathy," said Nancy Dang, one of the owners of the Golden Lotus. Members of the Dang family, who opened the restaurant on the corner of 13th and Franklin streets in 1996, said they also donated another $1,500 to a religious organization serving food to volunteer workers in New York.

The Dangs are followers of the religious group, the Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association, which they describe as a meditation community whose members meditate for 2-1/2 hours every day. The Dangs said they regularly give donations to disaster relief funds around the world. Speaking through a translator, Nancy's father, Mr. Ut Dang said he identifies with the pain of the victims and their families, and said his donation "helps them feel less suffering and helps (me) feel less suffering also." Dang added he hopes the U.S. won't go to war, because "if a war is created, not only the enemy suffers, but we suffer."