Dear Fellow Sangha members,
At the beginning of last December we wrote to you to let you know that Vidyasakhi, our Chair, was needing to take some time out. She had been working extremely hard, especially since the beginning of the Pandemic period, and now urgently needed to recharge her batteries. We hoped back then that she would return in the New Year feeling refreshed and restored.
I’m afraid that hasn’t happened, and to compound things during her convalescence she broke her arm and caught Covid. It is becoming clearer to her that she is going to need to take a much longer period of time away and she feels that with this in mind she needs to step away from being Chair of the Cambridge Centre.
Vidyasakhi has written something to send out to you all and I include it here:
Dear friends
As you know I have been taking some time out to rest and recuperate in recent weeks, after an intensely busy and at times very stressful few years of managing the Centre and latterly also acting as Triumvir/Co-Chair. During this secluded time I have been doing some very careful thinking and reflecting on my fitness for the post and what actually is appropriate for me at this point in my Order life. I should have taken such a break before I decided to step up, but with all that was going on in relation to seeing us through the lockdown and its aftermath, I failed to notice that I needed to take that opportunity.
As a consequence of my recent reflections, however, I have decided to step down as Chair. It hasn't been easy, but I feel strongly it's the right thing for me and the Centre. I do feel that I leave with a strong and able Centre Team and a magnificent Council of Trustees who will be able to navigate the Centre through the next few months and years, at a time of great possibility and change.
I wish the Centre Team and the Council well, and would like to express my gratitude for all of the friendship I have received here in Cambridge. I feel myself to be a much richer and wiser being than I was when I arrived!
Please do get in touch if you would like to: I'd love to hear from you.
With love,
Vidyasakhi
...
We are saddened that we are losing Vidyasakhi after such a short time as Chair, but she is doing what she needs to do and we wish her well with her recovery. We hope it is not too long before we will be able to say our goodbyes and be able to express our appreciation for all that she has done during her time with us in Cambridge.
The Council of Trustees is now considering the next steps in finding a replacement for Vidyasakhi as Chair and we hope to be able to let you know something soon.