 |
HEADLINES
2007 Annual Lavang Gala Vietnam Veterans Involved with VDS More Darrah Hollenbach: Our Volunteer English Teacher's Experience at the Lavang Boarding House. More Students' Appreciations: We invite you to read their stories and journey with them in their sentiments of joy and gratitude. More PAST EVENTS2006 Annual Lavang Gala: More Recognitions: More
|
WELCOME to Vietnam Dream for Success Website. We
invite you to take some time to view our web and learn
more about our missions to the poor in Vietnam. We
hope and pray that you will choose to become a
sponsor/supporter of our humanitarian projects that
aim at effecting positive changes for poor children,
young adults, and women in Vietnam.
Sr. Cecilia Nguyen, CCSS
President & Co-Founder
About Us
Vietnam Dream for Success is organized and operated exclusively for charitable and educational purposes within the meaning of section 501 (c) (3) of the IRS code, including to cultivate, promote, foster, sponsor, develop, and encourage educational opportunities and scholarship in Vietnam, focusing on disadvantaged and poor children, young adults, and women. Our Lavang Boarding House in Saigon provides tuition, room, and board for college students from poor families and assists them in the completion of their college degrees. Our Lavang Libraries provide reading resources to aid the students in their academic endeavors, to make available religious literatures on the Catholic faith and other religious traditions, and to combat illiteracy. Our Lavang Scholarship Program provides financial assistance to qualified students in elementary, high school, and college levels.
We work in cooperation with the religious communities in Vietnam, including the Catholic community and other religious affiliations. We operate exclusively for humanitarian, charitable purposes to improve the quality of life for the poor in Vietnam through the means of education.
Our Mission
Following the footsteps of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who walked on this earth tending to the needs of the poor, Vietnam Dream for Success seeks to render its service to provide a better quality of life for the poor and vulnerable of Vietnam.
History
Vietnam Dream for Success came into existence with the aspiration, inspiration, enthusiasm, dedication, generosity, and vision of several special individuals:
Carol Cassidy Folsom-Director of Development, Autism Society of America
Jeannye Thornton Hencke-former journalist for US News and World Report
John Knapp-Vietnam veteran
Tricia Morrin Lloyd-Executive Director for North American College in Rome
Clark Massey-Founder of Simple House
Joe Myers-Chiropractor
Petal Somarsingh-CPA for Olympus Management LLC
Andrea Steele-Spouse of Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele
Sister Cecilia Thuy Nguyen, a doctoral candidate in Biblical Literature in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, was born in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. She came to the United States in 1975 with her family in the first wave of refugees at the age of eight. She felt a call to enter the religious life in 1985 just a year after her high school graduation in New Orleans. In 1995 Sr. Cecilia returned to Vietnam for the first time by herself and encountered a cultural shock after witnessing the impoverished conditions there. After this first trip, she has devoted her life to help the poor in Vietnam in all aspects of life: medical, education, and social.
In cooperation with the Missionary Cooperation Plan of the Archdiocese of Washington, charitable foundations, and individual donors, Sr. Cecilia has accomplished more than she ever dreamt of. For the past ten years Sr. Cecilia has represented different religious groups in Vietnam for the MCP: Vietnamese Dominican Sisters, Archdiocese of Hue, Diocese of Da Nang, Diocese of Phat Diem, Diocese of Xuan Loc, Diocese of Phan Thiet, St. Joseph Orphanage, and the Cistercian Monks. The following have been accomplished for the poor people in Vietnam for the past ten years.
1-Vietnamese Dominican Sisters: built a childcare center in Bung Ke; assisted in the construction of St. Martin Medicine Dispensary; provided sewing machines and supplies at the Career Center; provide soup to the poor at the soup kitchen; provided food, medicine, and clothing to lepers; maintained a literacy program for poor students; and built houses for poor families.
2- Archdiocese of Hue: built and stocked a full-size Lavang Library for poor children and young adults in the vicinity of Phu Cam Cathedral of the Archdiocese; stocked a Lavang Mission Library.
3- Diocese of Da Nang: built and stocked a full-size Lavang Library for poor children and young adults in the vicinity of Thanh Duc Parish; stocked a small library for a mission parish; stocked two Lavang Mission Libraries.
4- Diocese of Phat Diem: built and stocked a full-size Lavang Library for poor children and young adults in the vicinity of Phat Diem Cathedral, next to the bishop’s residence.
5- Diocese of Xuan Loc: assisted in the renovation of the seminary’s library.
6- Cistercian Monks of Dalat: assisted in the construction of a retreat center built by the Cistercian monks for the spiritual needs of the clergy, religious, and lay people.
7- Diocese of Bui Chu: built and stocked a full-size Lavang Library for poor children and young adults in the vicinity of the diocese.
In additions, Sr. Cecilia helped build an orphanage for the orphans in Binh Duong, Vietnam through funds received from private donors. She has also rendered service to these orphans in other areas, such as building a career center, providing food, school supplies, and medical care. Through a generous donor and friend, Sr. Cecilia also assisted Bishop Paul Nguyen Thanh Hoan, President of the Vietnam Bishops Conference for Charity and Social Services, in the establishment of an herbal plantation in Phan Thiet to produce Chinese medicine for the poor. She also assisted Bishop Paul in the construction of a clinic that provides free medical check ups and medicine to the poor in Phan Thiet and a boarding house that provides room and board for high school students in the same area. Other projects include drilling of wells for the poor families in Ca Mau, building bridges for the villagers in Kien Giang and Hue, and distributing foods to poor families in Hue, Da Nang, Kieng Giang, and Dong Nai through our Christmas Smiles program.
Recently Sr. Cecilia’s few American friends in the DC area suggested that Sr. Cecilia establish a non-profit organization called Vietnam Dream for Success (VDS) to continue helping the poor in Vietnam with a special focus on providing educational opportunities for poor students. In her experience, Sr. Cecilia is convinced that education is the only means to end the cycle of poverty in Vietnam. She believes that by providing the poor students an opportunity to attend school and even college, these young people can hope for economic security for themselves and their families.
With the hard work and support of Sr. Cecilia’s many friends and volunteers, Vietnam Dream for Success was formally incorporated as a non-profit in the District of Columbia on July 19, 2005. It held its First Lavang Award at the French Embassy to honor two individuals for their humanitarian efforts to improve the quality of life for the poor in Vietnam. Mr. Jan Scruggs, Founder and President of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, is working to educate the people of Vietnam on the danger of landmines. Mr. Scruggs also initiated the construction of Vietnam Memorial, the most visited monument in Washington, DC. Fr. Vincent Rigdon, Director of the Mission Office of the Archdiocese of Washington, was also honored for his support of the missions in Vietnam for the past six years, as described above.
We thank God and our many benefactors who have made it possible to help us change the lives of the poor in Vietnam. Now we ask you to help us to continue the mission of Jesus: “Just as you did it to the least of these who are my brothers and sisters, you did it to me” (Matt 25:40). This is what matters in life; this is how Jesus will recognize us when we are ready to meet him.
Thank you for your prayers and generous support. May God bless you and your family with God’s manifold blessings. Let us keep each other in our hearts and in our prayers for ourselves, our families, and the people throughout the world. Let us pray that the “dream for success” of our poor children throughout the world will be realized soon.