Sow love, connect the circle of kindness

From 5am every Tuesday and Friday, the charity kitchen at 22/3 Tran Quy Cap Street, Tan Lap Ward is red hot again. About 20 Buddhists gather in the kitchen, busily preparing each meal and delivering it to poor patients. While working, everyone chats and asks about each other's circumstances and lives. Their eyes are filled with joy because they can contribute their efforts to share with life.

The rice kitchen operates regularly every Tuesday and Friday.

Among the volunteers at the kitchen, there are some very enthusiastic volunteers. For example, Dinh Hai Yen (born in 1987, in Tan Lap ward), although busy with the coffee shop business, still spends time running the kitchen every week. Coming to the kitchen to sow seeds, Hai Yen not only helps manage the books, receive necessities but also donates food. Yen confided: "Each person contributes a little but can share with many people."

"Monks always wish to bring happiness and love to life regardless of religion or ethnicity. The Provincial Buddhist Social Charity Board will survey and establish more charity kitchens in the eastern region of the province to spread the spirit of compassion and charity, and share difficulties with people in the community" - Venerable

There are volunteers who, although they are already the owners of a charity kitchen, still come to help when they hear about the charity kitchen's operation. That is Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong (born in 1973), the owner of the zero-dong kitchen at 97 Y Ngong Street, Buon Ma Thuot Ward. Ms. Phuong expressed: "Coming to the charity kitchen, I can help, share, learn experiences and want to help the teachers to maintain this kitchen."

The charity rice kitchen was initiated and established by Venerable Thich Tri Nghia, Deputy Head of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in Dak Lak Province, Head of the Provincial Buddhist Social Charity Committee, abbot of Phuoc Tinh Pagoda (Ea Kly Commune), and officially operated from August 15, 2025. On average, each week, the rice kitchen organizes cooking and provides free meals for about 2,000 disadvantaged patients being treated at the Central Highlands General Hospital, the Traditional Medicine Hospital and students of Dak Lak Vocational College.

Members of the Charity Kitchen support meals to patients at the Dak Lak Provincial Hospital of Traditional Medicine.

Venerable Thich Tri Nghia has also established and maintained the Phuoc Tinh Pagoda's charity kitchen since 2010, providing an average of over 1,800 meals per week to patients at Krong Pac General Hospital. In addition, philanthropists inside and outside the province have supported funding to join the Provincial Buddhist Social Charity Board and Phuoc Tinh Pagoda in donating 340 wheelchairs to the disabled, organizing gift-giving events on holidays and Tet for the poor, giving gifts on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival to disadvantaged children in the province with a quantity of 4,000 gifts/year, and giving scholarships to 9 orphans with an amount of 1 million VND/child/month.

Contributing to the national emulation movement to eliminate temporary and dilapidated houses in the province, along with the donation of 140 million VND to the Fund for Eliminating Temporary and Dilapidated Houses of Krong Pac District (old), 5 houses of Love for households in especially difficult circumstances with a budget of 80 to 100 million VND/house were also donated by compassionate hearts. Thanks to that, many households have had the opportunity to settle down. For example, the family of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thuoc (born in 1966) in village 5, Ea Kly commune, has especially difficult circumstances, she herself is in poor health and has a mental illness. The house of the mother and her 5 children is temporarily built, surrounded by tarpaulin. Thanks to the financial support, the mother and her children no longer have to worry about the rain and wind.

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/xa-hoi/202509/geo-yeu-thuong-noi-vong-nhan-ai-51310b9/