On the 14th or 15th of every lunar month, upon hearing the voice of the 72-year old man, many locals with bowls of rice in their hands hurry towards the canal bank. Sitting on the boat, Mr. Lam reaches out to receive the rice. He places it on a simple scale, takes some notes and pours it into a sack. Finally, he thanks them for their contribution and rows away.
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| Nguyen Phuoc Lam, 72, receives donation of rice from a local man along Vi Binh Canal to bring to help poor patients at Hau Giang hospital |
The idea for the charity work started 12 years ago when one of his poor neighbors went down with a serious disease. Mr. Lam desperately wanted to help him but couldn’t, due to his own poverty and disability. He decided to row along the canal, asking each household for only a handful of rice. Thanks to their help, his neighbor survived the illness.
In 1999, hearing of a team that provided poor patients with free rice, porridge and boiled water at Hau Giang Polyclinic, he and his wife volunteered to give a hand.
Each month, he rows 2 kilometres up the Vi Binh canal in the Mekong Delta\'s Hau Giang province on the 14th lunar day to collect donations and 3 more kilometers along the canal the next day to bring rice to the team. Usually, he can collect about 150 kilogrammes of rice from the locals in the morning. He said that many people did not trust him at first, thinking that he might sell the donated rice and pocket the money for himself.
Though sad, he does not let it bother or stop him but just continues his commitment to bring rice to those in need. Only one thing weighs heavy on his mind: that he cannot row farther to collect more rice.
Knowing of his dedication and kindness, many people voluntarily bring their rice donation to his home. One time he was too tired to row and had to pull over to the bank for a rest, a canoe man tugged his boat home without charging any fee.
Another time a kind person offered to buy him a new boat, but he denied, thinking that it might be interpreted as taking advantage of other people’s kindness.
He is happy to help the poor. With the encouragement and support of his family and locals, he will continue the charity work as long as he can.
More than 12 tonnes of rice collected Mr. Phung Thien Chi, leader of the free meal team at Hau Giang Polyclinics, said that Mr. Lam should have retired long ago. However, he still does charity out of compassion for the poor. He has collected more than 12 tonnes of rice so far. |
