SITIAWAN: When death takes place in a Chinese village in Changkat Keruing, Manjung, a community kitchen will be activated.

While the bereaved family is occupied with funeral arrangements, the community kitchen will take charge of all the meals for the wake and funeral services.

The community support, which started more than 10 years ago, is still in practice today.

Teacher Doo Chong Mee said it started with a funeral at her home where local villagers volunteered to cook for the family.

It turned out saving hefty expenses on food bills for the family.

After the funeral, Doo gathered a group of married women in the village to set up a community kitchen to cook for bereaved families.

Pang Hing Hock, adviser to a local Chinese society, agreed to sponsor the community kitchen and allow its members to cook at his kitchen.

Since then the community kitchen has been operating until this day.

Doo will inform members of the community kitchen through WhatsApp whenever their service is needed.

She will then be arranging for manpower, finalising daily menus, ordering meat and greens from suppliers at the wet market after communicating with the bereaved family.

Members of the community kitchen make up of housewives, traders, farmers and teachers who are available to offer their time.

They will divide work among themselves and take turns to prepare the meals.

The members start preparing lunch at 9.30 a.m. and dinner at 3.30 p.m., so that lunch and dinner will be ready by 11.30 a.m. and 5.30 p.m. respectively. Supper is prepared at 7 p.m.

For more than 10 years, the volunteers have been referred to as “Living Buddhas” by local villagers for helping fellow villagers during bereavement without at no charge.

Doo said members of the community kitchen are in turn rewarded with angpows after the funeral.

A villager whose mother passed away several months ago said he spent close to RM11,000 for food and angpows for volunteers in five days instead of RM20,000 if a food caterer is sought.

“We are very blessed to have a community kitchen in our village,” he said.