Humanitarian Activities While in Vietnam

A number of you have asked for more detail on the humanitarian activities we will be doing while in Vietnam. I just received this overview from our Tour of Peace leader and so I pulled out much of the organizational stuff (they even have delegated which of us will be actively heading up each of the "events") and pasted here just the basics of the programs.
Hope you enjoy hearing about them.

Check for some explanations I will add at the bottom as well:

School for the Visually Impaired
About 100 visually challenged children and young adults ranging from 6-20 years old. We will provide some specially ordered and requested necessities, as well as a few items from our suitcases. We will present a gift to the Director, Mr. Tam.
After our meeting, we will let the blind massage students do some practice work on our jet-lagged bodies.

Leprosy Village
Roughly 100+ families. Representatives from each family with gather to meet us, and pick up the goods that we will pass out. TOP will purchase and transport necessities which we will distribute--rice, sugar, noodles, milk, etc. We have a considerable number of handmade leprosy bandages from America, as well as medical supplies from our suitcases. A gift will be presented to the village authority.

Da Lat School for the Mentally Challenged
Approximately 100 children, ages 5-15. TOP will buy necessities requested by the Principal. Our suitcases will offer up clothing, toys, candy, and school supplies. Playing with the children will be their most cherished gift. We will present a gift to the Principal. If available, gifts will be presented to the teachers.

Nha Trang Street Children Homes (2)
We have two homes to go to: One home with approximately 25 children, ages 6-16 years. Another home houses almost 25 adolescent/teenage boys. TOP will buy school supplies, clothing, food, and tools for vocational schooling. Our suitcases will provide more school supplies, toys, clothing, and candy. Gifts will be presented to teachers and caretakers at each home.

My Lai
This is a ongoing good-will ambassadorial project. It will especially be poignant because of we go on the anniversary date of the massacre. We may have an opportunity to meet with survivors of the massacre. If so, we will present them with gifts. We will meet with the staff of the museum and present gifts to them. One survivor is especially dear to TOP and will receive gifts for her and her grandchildren. One special member of the museum staff will receive gifts for her and her children. Also, Howie, may have opportunity to make a presentation to another survivor important to him. We will make a presentation of a special flower wreath and arrangement to the site.

Hoi An Nursing Home
Approximately 100 residents; mostly elderly and some younger disabled residents. Everyone receives a packet of TOP goodies, (toothbrush, shampoo, soap, etc.) and some money. TOP also provides additional food and medical items. Adult clothing from suitcases will likely go here. Special gifts will be presented to some special people, including the Director. Caretakers will be presented gifts and some necessities.

Hue Street Children's Lunch
We invite street children for lunch. It is what we call "organized chaos." The project started a few years ago with inviting a handful of street children to lunch. In November, our count was 105 children. So, likely March 2005 there will be more than 105--maybe 120? We will be parents to these kids for lunchtime, and serve up the food. We will also give each child a goody packet with toys, candy and school supplies (Ziploc bags are best used for this project.)

Hue Orphanage
About 250 kids, ages infant to 16, are in this orphanage run by Buddhist nuns. We will likely spend most of our time with the younger children. Some of our toys will be left here. TOP will purchase necessities for the orphanage. Clothes, school supplies, and some medical supplies from our suitcases will be left at the orphanage. All non-mystery village/Khe Sanh village left-over necessities will be presented to the orphanage.

Mystery Village/Khe Sanh Village
The number of villages we will visit is unknown and where we go is random--that's why we call this project the "Mystery Village." There is one particular village in the backcountry of Khe Sanh that we will likely visit. In Khe Sanh, anything left goes here. For "Mystery Villages" and Khe Sanh all hotel amenities, water bottles, toothbrushes, shampoo, etc. will be given out equitably to adults. We will pass out toys for kids. Clothes will be given out--perhaps presented to the village chief. Something special will be presented to the village chief. All giveaways must be organized to prevent any crowd control problems

My Notes: To put some of this into perspective, when they talk about giving "gifts" they mean something that we take for granted but is very special to the recipients there such as a full size shampoo, hand sanitizer, inexpensive dimestore watch, hairbrush, writing paper, pen, etc.

We are still working on putting together new and nearly new clothing to take over there for the adults in particular but my exploration of excess baggage penalty fees has resulted in the fact that we will be forced to pay from $109 to $200 for any bags we take over our allowance of 4. (It depends on who is at the United ticket counter when we check the bags in and how they interpret the regulations.) However, those fees add up real fast so we are weighing out (no pun intended) the benefits of paying the excess baggage versus saving that money to just purchase some humanitarian items there. Some of it will depend on the quality of small adult clothing that Cindy and I am able to find at her special "Treasure Chest" Goodwill this Friday and if we get anyone volunteering to "sponsor" a bag to go over by paying the excess baggage penalty fees.

The term I used with the charitable clubs I have contacted for possible donations still applies...Cash travels well!!!

Thanks for listening and for the support.

By the way our newspaper article here in Lincoln City has been delayed until next week...too bad as that may have put us in touch with some other resources before the trip and now it will not come out until so close to our departure...but oh, well, we will see.