It is often said, “Education is the key to success.”  For poor families in isolated areas, education is a luxury beyond their reach.

          Consider the expense of tuition, books, and uniforms along with the distance to school.  The walk to school could take one or two hours for these students.

          As many of you know, the needs of the poor people in Vietnam are so vast. For many years, the Hong An Association has been focusing on the program "Hong An Rice” for those who can no longer care for themselves like the elderly, disabled, mentally unstable,  and lepers or  those with other incurable diseases. The Hong An Association felt the need to help students who have to give up their education to help their families.  Students in highlands and rural areas face a shortage of schools, especially for the upper-grade levels.  For example, there may be a primary school (grades 1-5) near the village. But the secondary school (grades 6-9) are farther away.  Students in these grades would have to walk over 3 miles to school.  High schools are very scarce, so students might have to walk over 8 miles to the nearest high school.  Universities are even more scarce.  A small, isolated city like Kontum does not have a private university but only one branch of Danang University that recently opened.

          Some children rely on a friend for transportation.  This means they must rely on their friend’s schedule.  If the friend is late, busy, or sick; the children miss school, too.  When children fall far behind in assignments, they are afraid to go back to school.

          The Sister in charge shared: “The children in the villages are really poor. They commute a long way to school and leave early in the morning. Sometimes, they do not have anything to eat.  How can they focus on school on an empty stomach? If they are lucky, some days they can carpool with a friend. When the Hong An Association donated bicycles, the children were happy because they did not have to ask their friends for a ride.

          Many other children have no transportation or tuition, so they withdraw from school early. For these reasons few minority students going to college Some of the students are very bright, but they have to leave school because they cannot afford tuition to continue their education…”

          In addition, it is difficult for ethnic minority children to learn in school because Vietnamese is not their first language.  Many of the ethnic minority families are still speaking the local languages (Xo Dang, Bana, Gia Rai, GieTriengTrieng ,Brau, Ro Mam). In order to learn in school, the children have to put in double the work and effort. It is comparable to Vietnamese refugee families when they first came to the United States and had to learn to speak English at school. It is no wonder many of the children who finish primary school end up dropping out of school!  Seeing their children and grandchildren go through such difficulties is sad for these families!

          The Hong An Association started to contribute funds to the Sisters in Kontum and Tuyen Quang so that the Sisters could give bicycles to the deserving students. Where the roads were flat, the Sisters bought bicycles for about $60 per bicycle; wherever the roads are too hilly, the Sisters bought more durable bicycles at about $90 per bicycle. Children who received the bicycles were as thrilled as if they won the lottery. A bicycle for the city people means very little; but for the children in the poor areas, it is a big fortune.

          The Hong An Association would like to invite everyone to lend a helping hand to provide more children with bicycles so they can have the opportunity to get an education for a brighter future.

          In mid-2019, Hong An Association decided to give 100 more bags of rice monthly to poor people in Kontum through the Sisters serving here, the Daughters of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal of Kontum. These Sisters are unique as many of them are from ethnic minorities.  Because of their background, the Sisters can communicate and interact with villagers who are also from ethnic minorities.  Many of these minorities do not speak Vietnamese.

         The Sisters in the other congregations were mostly Kinh people, so the language barrier made it difficult for them to communicate when they tried to serve these villages. It is a blessing that the Sisters of Kontum can connect with the poor in these villages! The Sisters were delighted to be the conduit between the benefactors and the villagers. The Sisters stated, “We are also ethnic people so if we cannot help our people, we are sad. Thank you very much, Hong An Association for this opportunity!” With the contribution of 100 bags of rice per month, the Sister in charge contacted the Sisters who served in many villages to select the recipients based on their poverty and living situation. Here is  a breakdown of the total 100 recipients in the 20 villages: Ya Tun 1 (2), Ya Tun 2 (2), ĐăkSút 1 (3), Đăk Chung 1 (1), Đăk Poi (1), ĐăkTuk (15), Kon Rơbang (10), Kon HơngoKơ Tu (16), RơLơng (2), TrạiPhongĐak Kia (11), ĐăkCang (1), Hnor (1), Kontum KơPơng (1), Kon Jơdri (2), Kon BơBăn (3), Kon Sơ Tiu (2), Kon Krôk (9), Kon Hơdrê (7), Kon Drei (10), Kon Du (1)…

          Many times when the Hong An Association follows up with the Sisters in Vietnam, they are informed that some recipients replaced others on the “Hong An Rice” donation list. There are many reasons why the Sisters replaced the old recipients with new ones. Some of these reasons are: A recipient has passed away or moved to another place.  Another reason is that their family members stepped up to take care of them in place of the Sisters. They felt the responsibility to care for their elderly family members and they had the full potential and capability to do so.

          The poor old people are often considered as a burden to the family and to the society so they are neglected and abandoned.  Sometimes their children are also poor or work far from home, so they are unable to help much. Often there was a change of attitude when they noticed the Sisters visiting and giving the rice to the elderly every month.  The family was shocked and questioned themselves, "If the Sisters, who are outsiders, can care for my parents and grandparents, then why can’t we?” Slowly, the children started to visit their elderly to take care of them. Then the elderly people asked the Sisters to give their rice to another person in need. Isn’t that wonderful? It is more than the Hong An Association could wish for!

          In the beginning of 2019, the Sisters of Bắc Ninh shared stories about the Bicycle Donation program for the poor students initiated by the Hong An Association.  They also shared pictures of the Sisters visiting poor villages and distributing warm blankets, clothes, and food.

The Sisters stated: “Sister, I have sent you many photos showing that miracles do happen for the unfortunate and poor! I told people that although many benefactors live in America, the Hong An Association still cares about the poor and elderly people in remote areas in Vietnam.  Now the Association is donating 35 bicycles to students in need. By sharing these stories, people started to give items and food for the poor! Thanks be to God that the Hong An Association is bringing joy to the families and helping students continue their education. Thank you, Sister and the Hong An Association.”

          When referring to the state of Vietnamese society, the Hong An Association would like to quote a passage from the homily of Bishop Peter Nguyen Van Kham of the Diocese of My Tho and General Secretary of the Vietnamese Bishops' Conference. This is the sermon on the Second of Lent and refers to the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJ7kO8uqA4I):

           “... Once Vietnam was independent and free. Brothers and sisters, is it enough or do we still need a new outlook today? Is it enough or do we need another solution today? This country is already independent and free, but it still seems unfair, the gap between the rich and the poor is growing; families are breaking down more and more; dishonesty is everywhere, including in schools and hospitals. But when dishonesty and cheating are everywhere, can human life in society be peaceful and happy? So, the question we ask today is: Do Vietnam and the people of Vietnam need a new outlook? Are we truly free? Then we discovered political and socio-economic freedom are essential, but the deepest source is the freedom that comes from within the human heart which Christianity calls inner freedom.... ”

(All of the following people have been supported by Hong An Association)

The Sisters (Mary Queen of Buichu) at Lang Son recalled a story:

          “This morning we visited a poor family who has with a child with a mental illness. When he was having mental breakdown, he stabbed his father 8 times and cut off part of his mother’s foot. The parents were taken to the hospital, and the son was taken to a mental hospital. The father was injured with a lot of wounds, but he can dress himself now and the mother is recovering, also."

         The story is terrible, isn’t it? Perhaps some of you can recall the story a few years ago of a young mother who had a mental illness and accidently killed her child when she had mental breakdown. She was taken to the hospital for treatment. When she recovered and went home, she realized that she killed her child. Heartbroken, she killed herself. What a tragedy!