Lunchtime Is Important!
Each student and teacher needs time and a place to take a break from the rigors of schoolwork, catch up with friends, and nourish the body. Three years ago, Siddhartha School Principal Dechen Wangmo informed us that the school was in need of a new kitchen and dining hall. Our current facilities simply no longer meet the needs and standards of our campus.
Housed in what used to be the student dormitory building, the current dining hall (pictured above) can only seat 70 people comfortably, and our student body is over 400! So the lunch break is often loud and cramped. And with a hardened dirt floor and a deteriorating ceiling, the overall state of the building is poor.
The current kitchen (pictured above) is clean but impractical. The open-gas fires that heat the food are unventilated. A 7-foot concrete slab is the only countertop, and there is very little room for storage. Admirably, our 2 intrepid cooks are able to prepare multiple meals for 60 dormitory students and 10 teachers each day. But we’ve outgrown what’s there, plain and simple.
The new kitchen and dining hall (pictured above) has been designed with the students’ and staff’s needs in mind:
- Nearly doubled main dining area of 60′ x 24′
- 96 student seats
- 2 handwashing stations
- Improved kitchen with increased storage and a staff bathroom
- A visitor dining area
