2024 Annual Report

Before we talk more about our projects over the past year, we just wanted to share a little story. Recently, it was brought to our attention the struggles of a grade 7 student in Phong Hoa Junior High School in Huế. The student’s name is Huyen and she has a heart condition. She has a younger brother with mental disability. Her father has kidney disease and needs to go for kidney dialysis 3 times a week. Huyen also has 4-years old brother, whom she also cares for. She cooks, washes clothe,s and takes care of the household, while her mother goes to work from early morning to evening in the field to earn money to pay for dialysis. Unfortunately, Huyen hasn’t had a good medical assessment because they don’t have enough funds to pay for the doctor’s fees. This family is struggling financially. Her family is very poor.

When our volunteer representative Van Anh visited there house, he saw how old, run down, and small their home is, with a single bedroom and living room. They didn’t have food in the house. We learnt that Huyền asked her school to drop out, in part because of her weak heart. She becomes easily short of breath with exertion, and so the cycling back and forth on the long trips to school and home tires her out. She wanted to drop out to save her energy to care for her siblings and father and help her mother. Her classmates and teacher were very sad when she became absent from school.

This past wknd, on behalf of CVBF, our representative Văn Anh presented an electric bike, helmet and raincoat to Huyen. We felt that this would help Huyen get to school and back, without putting too much strain on her heart, so that she has the energy to both go to school and get home to help care for her family as she wishes. We were informed that Huyên has gone back to school and she is very happy. Her classmates, teacher and school principal are extremely happy and grateful that we are helping Huyen.

Huyen is one of the reasons why we gather here each year, to give hope and opportunities to these poor and underprivileged children and youths, through love, education, and the provision of basic needs. We want to do so much more to help Huyen and many children like her. Unfortunately, the need is still great.

Because of you, this past year, we were able to direct over $170,000 to help those in need.

$41000 went towards helping 20 orphanages throughout Vietnam with their basic needs such as rice and other foods, diapers, detergents, and clothing. Of that, 12,000 was directed to help Niem Phat Duong Hung Phuoc in Ca mau with renovations to improve the living conditions of the orphans living at that temple. At Khuyet Tat My Lam (Kien Giang) we helped renovate the children’s sleeping quarters and provided the children there with a new desktop computer w/ educational software. At Trung Tam khuyet Tat Hung Dong (Binh Thuan), we provided the children there with a newly built storage units where the kids can store their belongings. At Mai Am Thanh Te (Gia Lai), we provided 2 commercial washers/dryers to help the caregivers care for the children and a water heater so they can have hot showers. We also provided washers to Mai Am Mai Ngan (Tay Ninh) and Mai Am Duc Quang (Ben Tre). At Mrs Hong’s shelter (Gia Lai), we provided 20 new bed frames and 20 warm blankets. At Khuyet Tat To Am Huynh De (Binh Thuan), we provided 600 notebooks/colouring books and pencils. And at Mai Am Thien An (Hau Giang), we funded hotmeals to nourish their young tummies. These are examples of just a handful of things we are helping the orphanages with.

This past year, we also provided over $16000 in scholarships to underprivileged students up to university level to help them complete their education and achieve their professional goals. We spent $3700 on new bicycles for students in Bac Nga and Cao Lanh to help the students travel the long distances through the heat to get to school. And in Dong Thap, we helped students w/ their school insurance.

In the community, in memory of our dear friend and family, Thuy Mai, we provided 384 winter jackets and 200 blankets to keep the children warm through the winter months, in the community of Peng Lang, Dak Plo, where last year, a well was built through the generosity of Mr Tom Inglis, in memory of his beloved wife Suzanne Inglis. This year, in memory of Thuy Mai, we also helped build a well in Quang Tri.

Because it does get pretty cold in the northern regions of Vietnam, in Khau Vai, Meo Vac Ha Giang, CVBF provided hundreds 150 warm winter jackets to the children there. In Can Tho, we helped the street kids with rice, educational learning supplies like math/language arts textbooks, notebooks, etc. In UMinh, we gifted the poor family with gifts for the lunar new year. This year we had the Vang Trang Thuoi Tho with the mission to bring a meaningful midautumn festival to the poor children. This year we brought the celebration over 1000 children to Tran Hung Dao elementary and junior high school in Chu Se district, Gia Lai. We also contributed over 17,000 to the building of a foot bridge in An thai Dong (Tien Giang) to help students cross safely to school and helped build a library at the Sa Tram elementary school (Quang Tri)

These are just highlights of all the things we’ve done just in the past year alone. All this is only possible because of you.

If we may give special recognition to Mr. Doug Chalke, of Sunrise Family Services, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Tom Inglis in Mississauga, ON, Bill Harany in Victoria BC, Dr. Steve Choi in Oakville, Ontario, chi Dong Phan and Chua Phat Quang congregation, Dr. Cecile Phan, Dr. Grace Le, Huynh Anh Mai — who have all made huge contributions to our efforts annually because of the huge size of their hearts!! They’ve made many, many projects possible.

And, if we may praise and acknowledge Mr & Mrs. Baril, and all other sponsors who brought us refugee families to Canada over 40yrs ago. They have been steadfast in their support of all our efforts through all the years. We are here today able to do what we do because of them. All that we have is because of them. Their kindness has rippled forth through the years, and are rippling back to the underprivileged children of Vietnam to effect many positive changes there.

Lastly, a heartfelt THANK YOU to each and everyone of you here tonight. We have accomplished so much together. You have put your trust in us, and we have done our very best to honour your kindness and generosity. Life gets busy, and we get caught up with the busyness of life, but this is the one event we look forward to every year, because we get to see YOU again. YOU have become so dear to our hearts. YOU have become like our family. YOU are such beautiful, amazing blessing in our lives, as you have given us strength and courage to continue our efforts to make this world a better place. We love you so! You have walked alongside us from the very beginning. It is our hope and wish that we will walk alongside each other for many, many years to come.