Feb 23, 2020 A Focus on 2020




With planning for Vietnam 2020 underway, it's high time that I allow an insight as to where things presently stand and what we hope to accomplish this year. Although my flight reservation for April/May was established some time ago, the subsequent arrival of the highly-publicized Coronavirus Covid-19 has affected air travel to, from, and between certain Asian countries. Thus, a degree of uncertainty exists. However, our 2020 humanitarian endeavor will nevertheless proceed, regardless of my physical location. My trusted and loyal comrades, Khanh (Hearts for Hue), Thong (Damn Guide), and Nhung (D.O.V.E. Fund) always rise to the occasion.


This year, for starters, I'd like to help a family whose plight was brought to my attention by Khanh, Chairman of Hearts for Hue. I has asked for his guidance insofar as humanitarian work in the rural hamlets near Hue.  His suggestion involves the building of a suitable dwelling for the Dung family, a mother and her three children. In Khanh's words:

Regarding to your project in April 2020 in Hue, I would like to recommend you support for Mrs Dung- A single mom with 3 children. Mrs. Hoang Thi Dung household is one of the poorest families in Hương Vân Commune, Huong Tra Town.  She is a single mom of 3 children (a boy who is 12 years old, and two twin daughters who are 3 years old). At present, she has to work very hard to support her son to keep going to school.  She now is working as an incense maker with a little income of 70,000 vnd ($3 USD) per day. Due to spending time on taking care of children, she is not able to find another job to get more income.  This family has been living in the temporary house made from makeshift materials since 2016: No toilet, kitchen, and floor with soil.
As you can determine from the photos, their house is extremely primitive. With an income of just $3/day, Mrs. Dung barely keeps her head above water. From my experience, though, the Vietnamese work ethic is quite impressive. The mother somehow keeps plugging along. Well, I propose that we provide this family with a decent house in which to live and 50 chickens for food and income. Here is the estimate to build a suitable dwelling.
                                                     (VND)          
Sheet Metal for Walls             15,000,000
Wall Framing                            3,000,000
Windows                                   2,000,000
Doors                                        2,000,000
Nails, Screws, Misc                     200,000
Wages                                       5,400,000
   Total                                     27,600,000  

This equates to about $1,200 in United States dollars. Work could start the very first of March. Photos of their current dwelling follow:




















               



 

Helping Mrs. Dung and family seems like a worthy & rewarding humanitarian project to kick off this year's program. It's what we do...provide hope & stability and turn lives around.

Of course, as always, we'll provide assistance to Lady The, Duong, and Thua. As you'll recall, The is Son's mother and Duong & Thua served in my unit, the 196th Light Infantry Brigade, during the war. 

Katie & Lady The

Kira & Duong

Thua, Kira & Katie

I also really want to do something for the school children at Nhi Ha, as we've done in years past.
The last trip involved providing backpacks for school books. I will work with Nhung to determine what is most needed this year.

Katie Distributing Backpacks at Nhi Ha


Distributing Backpacks at Nhi Ha School

So, Vietnam 2020 is underway and I'm hoping for a banner year. After the trip of a lifetime with my daughter and granddaughter, this solo journey will be a tough adjustment. Experiencing it all together was stupendous and I'm longing for a repeat. 

There isn't much with which to work at this point, so any help would be very greatly appreciated. I try diligently to stretch every dollar to achieve maximum humanitarian benefit. Thanks a million to all who have joined in the effort. We're making a difference....

Neil Hannan
PO Box 431
Copper Center, AK 99573

Neil


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