Buu Son Pagoda, Tan Hiep, Kien Giang, March 6, 2024: 200 Gift Packages for Remote Families

On March 6, 2024, the Compassionate Hands Foundation gave out 200 gift packages at Buu Son Pagoda in Tan Hiep district, Kien Giang, its last distribution in the Mekong Delta.

On March 6, 2024, the Compassionate Hands Foundation (Hội Từ Thiện Bàn Tay Nhân Ái) reached Buu Son Pagoda in Tan Hiep commune, Tan Hiep district, Kien Giang province. From the previous distribution in Ca Mau, the team had driven about 152 km northwest. According to the narration, this was the last place the team could hand out gifts in the Mekong Delta.

Getting to the pagoda

To reach the pagoda, the whole group squeezed onto a small boat to cross to the far bank. When they arrived, the villagers were already gathered, eyes bright at the sight of the group. The team did not want to keep them waiting and started sorting the gifts at once. Members worked fast, Mr. Tâm hauled the heavy loads, and everyone wanted the packages in people's hands as soon as possible.

A monk's words before the gifts

Before the handout, a monk on the team led everyone in chanting the Buddha's name. He said that from the road into the pagoda to where he stood, he could see the families' hardship was much greater than in California, where the team lives. He hoped everyone would turn toward the Three Jewels and feel that, however hard life is, there are people who care and share one another's pain.

Each package included a small prayer-bead bracelet. He asked the elders to spend five to ten minutes each night reciting the name of Amitabha Buddha or the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, moving one bead per recitation. He made clear the team did not expect anyone to become a Buddhist:

Chúng tôi mong ước rằng quý vị kết duyên với Đức Phật là quý vị đang hướng cuộc sống của mình về điều lành và điều thiện.
A monk from the team

(What we hope is that you form a bond with the Buddha, meaning you turn your life toward what is good and kind.)

What was given

A team member from California said the group brought 200 gift packages from donors far away. The speaker said plainly that the team's best effort would surely not be enough for every poor family in a remote area like this one. At Buu Son, the Foundation gave:

40 monthly rice books (regular rice allotments)
support for 20 students
16 wheelchairs
124 emergency gift packages

That made 200 packages. Besides rice, noodles and daily necessities, people received blankets, conical hats and tịnh tài (cash offerings) from Foundation members. The students received school bags and tablets of paper, hugging their gifts and smiling.

Homes and the elders

Beyond handing out gifts, the U.S.-based Foundation also builds "houses of love" for poor families living in leaking, wall-less shelters. The video recalls Mr. Tuấn in Soc Trang, the family's main earner, who fell seriously ill and was bedridden for several years while his wife looked after two children and lived beside a neighbor's wall. The Foundation raised money from donors for his treatment and to build him a house. The house is finished and, as the narration says, his health improved after surgery.

Near the end of the visit, the team spoke with an elderly woman or man who had received a gift. The elder said they were too old now to do volunteer work at the pagoda and stayed home reciting the Buddha's name every night before sleep. Asked whether the day was a happy one, the elder said:

Nhận quà quá vui.
An elder who received a gift

(Receiving the gift made me very happy.) The team led the elders to a shady spot to wait for their families and wished them good health.

The journey continues

The Foundation said goodbye to the Mekong Delta to continue its charity trip to central Vietnam in 2024. It hopes members will keep walking with it so the giving and receiving can go on.