Dipkar in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – The wish to share our compassion and love with the needy through free meals is the main reason we – DIPKAR members – has launched DIPKAR’s Food for the Poor (DFP) the first and foremost. DIPKAR members have worked on DFP program over 6 months. The program made its debut on November 10, 2016 in An Phu Ward and Binh Trung Dong Ward (District 2, Ho Chi Minh City), providing over 230 meals for the poverty-stricken, disabled, and elderly people without caregivers or poor immigrants in these areas. DFP program keeps running here every Thursday morning.
The good news is that DFP program now reaches other locations like Children Hospital 2 (District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) with more than 330 meals given to sick and poor people and their caregivers here.
Recently, DFP program has expanded into Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City. With the assistance of human resources from Binh Thanh District Youth Federation, every Saturday, DFP program provides more than 350 meals for poverty-stricken, disabled, and elderly people without caregivers as well as poor students or sick people in hospitals in Binh Thanh District.
Mr. Le Thanh Vu, head of Binh Thanh District Youth Federation, says: “Binh Thanh District is an overpopulated area with a total of 20 wards. People from rural areas flood into Binh Thanh District, mostly to seek jobs or study; many of them live a hard life. They are poverty-stricken, disabled, elderly people without caregivers, as well as poor students, sick people from hospitals in the district…We are so happy that DFP program has reached the needy people here”.
Mr. Le Thanh Vu and other members of Binh Thanh District Youth Federation have provided great support in terms of human power and logistics for DFP program. “DFP program help the young volunteers in our organization have better understanding of the hard life that poor people are facing and gives them the chance to contribute to the community for the poor people’s well-being”, he says.
Over the last one and a half months (between November 10, 2016 and December 24, 2016), DFP program has provided more than 2,300 meals for needy people at a total cost of over US$ 1,500 including food raw materials, rice, utilities bills (gas, electricity, and water), and other expenses. On average, DFP program now provides over 550 meals per week.
In addition to the great efforts of DIPKAR’s member in running DFP program, we also received invaluable sponsorship from external donors who are very kind-hearted and provided us with volunteer hours or financial support. We would like to express our deepest gratitude towards them for their help, without which we would have not been able to run the program.
We look forward to expanding our food relief program into other areas to extend our hands to more struggling people. Therefore, we need all of your assistance to continue on the journey of bringing love and compassion to the needy.
To join hands with us, please contact [email protected]