Share the Love and Joy with Underprivileged Children on Christmas

Ask anybody who was part of the APU International School’s annual Christmas charity trip this past weekend, December 17, 2011, about his/her thoughts after the trip and the common response would be summed up in the following keywords: love, goodwill, sympathy, and hope. As a tradition, APU International School organized a toy drive for orphans and children with disabilities for its annual Christmas charity trip in hopes of cultivating APU students’ commitment to community building and sense of benevolence to others.

This year, on behalf of the APU International School, over 30 students, parents, and APU staff visited Tu An Temple (1) and the Center for Children with Disabilities and Orphans Be Tho (2) on Saturday to bring cash donations, food, toys, stationery items, hygiene products, etc. to the underprivileged children at these two sites. The first stop was the Tu An Temple in Long Thanh, which houses 73 orphans who either lost their parents, were raised in a broken home without a caregiver, or those abandoned on the temple’s doorstep. The monks at Tu An temple were kind enough to take all of these innocent children in, give them a home, care for them, and give them an education. Children at Tu An Temple vary drastically in age, ranging from a few days old to 17 years old. Looking at those precious children who have undoubtedly suffered a great loss in life, everybody on the charity trip could not help but feel some pain in his/her heart as he/she cherished and sympathized with these children.

The second stop on the APU’s charity trip was the Center for Children with Disabilities and Orphans Be Tho in Dong Nai. This center is currently home to almost 200 children, from newborn babies to the oldest ones about twenty years of age. These children also came from many different backgrounds, but all were brought in under the care of nun Vu Thi Vinh. At this center, these children are given several opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities like singing, dancing, theatrical plays, etc. so they could freely express themselves and explore their potentials. In addition, in order to help older children reintegrate back to life, nun Vu Thi Vinh also have them learn cosmetology and other vocations so they could live well on their own once they leave the center.

This charity trip has left a lasting impression on each and every participant, who promises to come back often to share the love and joy with these underprivileged children and their angelic caregivers. APU International School hopes that these small Christmas gifts will help warm up their hearts during this holiday season. Although these two centers for underprivileged children are not widely known to the public, there is no question about the quality of care that these children receive. Below you will find the contact information of these two charity sites should you wish to donate.

(1) Tịnh Thất Từ Ân do Ni Sư Thích Nữ Minh Hải trụ trì tại Tổ 1 – Ấp Mỹ Tân – Xã Mỹ Xuân – Huyện Tân Thành – Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu
(2) Trung Tâm Nuôi Dạy Trẻ Khuyết Tật và Mồ Côi BÉ THƠ – D877 Tổ 22, Khu Phố 8, P. Long Bình, Biên Hòa, Đồng Nai