In April 2023, our team at Lovingkindness Vietnam visited the Song Lo Orphanage. This small orphanage is supported by donations, and we were happy to be able to bring much-needed supplies to the children.
We spoke with the caretakers at the orphanage to get a list of the items that were most needed. We then went shopping in Nha Trang and loaded up a truck with everything on the list.
On this visit, we brought fresh fruit, pork, meat pies, chicken, beef, vegan beef, mushroom varieties, seaweed cakes, fish cakes, yogurt, fish sauce, lotus seeds, tofu sheets, mung beans, tapioca balls, sesame seeds, seasonings, batteries, and toiletries.
The children were so excited to see us! They played with the toys and in the courtyard, and they enjoyed the fresh fruit that we shared with them. It was a lovely day, and we were so happy to be able to spend time with the children and help them in any way that we could.
We are grateful to Hung Pham, Fred Sims, David and Trini Nguyen, Linh Lam, Tuan Nguyen, Philip Doughty, and Vanessa Nguyen for their kind donation that made this trip possible. We are also grateful to the caretakers and children of the Song Lo Orphanage for their warm welcome and hospitality.
ABOUT THE SONG LO ORPHANAGE
The history of the Song Lo Orphanage’s beginnings is heartwarming. As the story goes, a Buddhist monk was traveling in the countryside when he encountered a woman who said she could not care for her 2 children. She left the babies with the monk and fled. Not expecting to have 2 babies to care for, the monk made his way to the Song Lo pagoda, and the head nun at the pagoda, Sister Cat, agreed to care for the children. From that point on, orphans have been either brought to the pagoda, or abandoned at their gates. Formed in 2012, the Song Lo Orphanage cares for a small group of young children. Located adjacent the Son Lo pagoda, it’s a small facility deep in the countryside west of Nha Trang.
