Project Poverty in Blindness was a self-made project that the priest at my parish, Vietnamese Martyrs, tried to start up. This project all started with a visit from two children the ages of 8 and 10 who showed up at our church one day to promote awareness for the blind children in Vietnam that needed our support. Despite their disabilities, these children are still able to live life in a place where their survival is harsh and grim. They live life in complete darkness and despite that they still struggle to see the light. After meeting these two children, I knew right then that this was something that I had to be a part of!

   During my junior year as I prepared for my upcoming trip to Vietnam in the summer of 2012, I knew that I had to prepare many things. The first thing that I had to do was set up some goals for myself, one of the major goals that I had in mind was to raise around $1,000 that I would donate to the children in Vietnam in support of their daily lives and education. When I first started with my fundraising, I had a difficulty but then my mom gave me a great idea and I had to put my cooking skills to great use. Both my mom and I set up about 4 food drives at major events where we would sell Vietnamese food in support of my project. By the end of all of this, to my surprise, I had raised over $1,500!

   Even though I had reached my goal near the end of junior year, I felt a moral obligation to do more. That was when I knew that I had to step out of my comfort zone and go around raising awareness and at the same time ask for donations to my project. I had set out to give informative speeches in about 4 different churches in search of donations. Some of the churches that I visited and spoke at are Vietnamese Martyrs, Resurrection, St. Eugene’s and Spring Lake. In this speech I would tell the stories of the children and the project that I am aiming for and would ask for a small donation. As time came closer for me to visit Vietnam, I met with many generous people who donated from $1-$50 to my cause. In the end of all of this madness I had raised about $2,600! Although I had reached my goal and raised quiet a sum of money, I still felt like there was something missing, so that was when I realized that I wanted to meet the people to whom am I giving this large sum of money!

   After discussing some ideas, both Father Chinh and I decided to go to Vietnam for two weeks and live in the orphanage in Vietnam and experience the life that they each have to go through every day. On August 13, 2012, I went to Vietnam and arrived at the orphanage and met the wondering and caring children who I soon found out were very friendly and welcoming. Some of the things that I wanted to do during these two weeks was to get the know each and every one of them and become friends with them. While there I’ve learned many things that I was never aware of before like; I was the first person to ever come and stay more than a few days in the orphanage, I was one of the first people who befriended them without it being an act out of pity, and that almost all of them there have a rough life in front of them. The only paths these children have in a brighter future are very slim. While there I talked with the head nun and discussed where the money will be going. The nun told me that with such a large sum of money, they wanted to buy a braille machine for the children, because one of the few careers they could be is to become a teacher. I agreed and with the money they received we went and bought a braille machine. The extra money went to the funds for food and other necessary things.