In October 2021 we had a great visit with the children at the Lac Thien Orphanage. COVID travel restrictions have begun lifting in Vietnam, and our team of volunteers was so happy to be able to visit in person once again. Due to the restrictions, the orphanage hadn’t received visitors or donations in many months. We wanted to bring lots of food to make sure the children were healthy and happy.

The nuns helped us compile a detailed shopping list, and our team had everything delivered to the orphanage. We brought bags of rice, a box of dried fish, racks of eggs, mushroom varieties, bags of sticky rice, mung beans, sugar, seasonings, boxes of instant noodles, packages of sausages, milk, brooms, light bulbs, pens, and toothpaste.

We stacked everything in the courtyard and all the children gathered around. As a fun treat, Mai Khanh made fruity drinks for the children to enjoy. We handed out balloons and everyone had so much fun!

This charity trip was made possible through the kind donations of Tomasz Jaworski, Elaine Nguyen, Maxhnguyen’s Store, an anonymous donor from Vanguard, and Amazon Smile. Thank you!!!

ABOUT THE LAC THIEN ORPHANAGE

Founded in 2006, the Lac Thien Orphanage is part of the Phat Buu pagoda and lies north of Nha Trang in Ninh Hoa district. The orphanage’s origins are endearing. On a peaceful day, a baby was left at the gates of the pagoda. The nuns cared for him, and from that day on they have taken in orphan children from the area. The orphanage is run by the nuns of the pagoda and its head nun, Chon Minh. They rely entirely upon donations, most of which come from people in the community. There are about 30 children at the orphanage, from newborns to teenagers, and Lac Thien also takes in elderly whose family cannot care for them.