“Hello everyone in the group "PUN - Journey of connecting love", my name is Nguyen Ha Phuong (from Thai Binh , now Hung Yen province) and I have been in the final stage of kidney failure for 9 years. On April 9, 2025, my father donated a kidney to me. Yesterday, May 9, 2025, my family was very lucky to have the uncles in the PUN group take me home safely and also give me gifts. My family would like to sincerely thank you, and wish you all in the PUN group good health and all the best.”

This is the sharing of Nguyen Ha Phuong on May 13, 2025 in the Facebook group: “PUN - Journey of connecting love”, one of the many words of gratitude that patients and their families sent to PUN after each free trip, each timely blood unit, or scholarships, relief shipments to difficult areas. Reading those simple but emotional messages, I was moved and connected with the PUN group to learn about the people behind this journey.

One late afternoon, I had the opportunity to meet Ms. Trinh Thi Anh (born in 1990, in Ha Dong ward, Hanoi ) and Mr. Nguyen Thanh Trung (born in 1984, in Ha Dong ward, Hanoi), two members of the Executive Board of the PUN volunteer group. My first impression was their openness and enthusiasm. Through their eyes, their way of talking and their every gesture, I clearly felt their constant concern for the patients and the difficult circumstances that the group was accompanying. Their meticulous care and dedication in every plan and every trip they shared made me understand why PUN is so trusted and appreciated by patients.

Zero fare trips

In 2021, when the Covid-19 epidemic in Hanoi was getting more intense, most means of transportation were temporarily suspended, making it difficult for many patients to travel for re-examination or treatment. In response to this urgent need, the PUN group was established with the goal of organizing 0-dong trips, accompanying patients to return home safely.

“At that time, we thought that we had time and our own car, the distance was not important, we just had to go, so whenever the patient needed support, we just went. When we saw that this was really meaningful, many other people with their own cars volunteered to join, and from there the group gradually grew, expanding its activities to support more difficult situations,” Ms. Trinh Thi Anh shared.

During the tense days of the epidemic, PUN team members strictly followed medical measures when bringing patients home. Photo: Thanh Trung

Recalling the stressful days of the epidemic, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Trung could not hide his emotions. When going to support patients, members had to strictly follow medical regulations, wear protective clothing, endure the heat and even hide it from their families to reduce their worries. On each trip, to the checkpoints, group members had to skillfully communicate so that the authorities understood and created conditions, ensuring that patients and children could move safely. In that situation, the affection and trust from the patients became the biggest motivation for Mr. Trung and the PUN members to continue their journey. "After each trip, seeing the joy of the patients, I realized that all the hardships and difficulties were worth it and meaningful," said Mr. Trung.

From the first zero-dong trips, up to now, PUN has become a strong volunteer group with 106 members of different ages and professions, but all are full of enthusiasm, ready to get on the bus day or night, whenever there is a patient in need of support.

With that spirit, the group has made more than 1,400 trips, connecting with nearly 20 hospitals in Hanoi such as: Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, Central Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, Central Acupuncture Hospital, Thanh Nhan Hospital... From there, directly supporting more than 1,800 patients, with a total amount of aid up to nearly 1 billion VND.

The support work of the group is implemented closely and systematically. All cases are coordinated with the hospital's social work department, from screening records, assessing circumstances to determining the specific needs of each patient. Thanks to that, each help is given to the right person, at the right time and truly meaningful.

The support from benefactors is completely voluntary, not through mobilization or appeal. When patients need it, the group has two approaches: Directly transferring gifts and money to the hospital's social work department for patients to receive, or connecting benefactors directly with patients. At the end of each month, the group summarizes the remaining fund, and members voluntarily contribute more. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Trung, who is also in charge of managing the group's finances, said: "The fund is used entirely for patients; all travel expenses and time of members are voluntary, not taken from this fund."

While chatting with me, Ms. Anh and Mr. Trung continued to monitor messages in the PUN group, paying attention to any cases that needed urgent support to promptly assign drivers, and closely monitoring the situation of the patient transport vehicles. After four years of working together with the group, the spirit and working rhythm were somewhat familiar, but every time a member set off, especially on long night trips to mountainous provinces such as Dien Bien, Lai Chau,... the people who stayed behind were always worried and restless.

“When the group has a trip, the remaining people, whoever is free, will be on duty by phone, calling to encourage the drivers, asking about the patient's condition, reminding them to rest and chatting so that everyone has more motivation and is alert when driving. We consider each other as family, always following each other on every road, sharing joys and worries and encouraging each other to bring the best things to the patients,” Ms. Anh proudly said.

Among the trips to support patients, Ms. Anh was most impressed by the trip on November 20, 2021, with her companion Tuan Duong, bringing 5-year-old Mai Dinh Cuong, who had leukemia, from the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion to Then Phang commune, Xin Man district, Ha Giang province (now Xin Man commune, Tuyen Quang province). As an elementary school teacher, November 20 was a special day for her, but that year, she only congratulated her colleagues via text message.

“I received the news that Cuong needed help at 5am, so I and Tuan Duong (a member of the group) immediately set off without having eaten anything. At noon, we stopped for 1 hour to eat and then continued on our way to take him home. It was dark, on the way back to Hanoi, we stopped to pick up another patient, made dinner from expired cakes and sat on the ground in the middle of the rest stop. The whole journey of more than 800km with 17 hours on the bus, I was tired but happy because I had brought the patient home safely,” Ms. Anh emotionally recounted.

Ms. Anh (second from left) accompanies the patient before the free bus ride home. Photo: PUN - Journey of connecting love

As for Ms. Ngoc Dieu (a member of the PUN executive board), the memory that she remembers is the special car that took a 7-day-old baby from the National Children's Hospital to Son La province. On the way, she asked the baby's father: "Do you want to eat anything? Some sticky rice, bread or cake?" but received only a sad voice in response: "I can't eat anything anymore, I just want to go home quickly..."

“That trip, my husband, I, and a member of the group took my father and son home. The air conditioning in the car was turned on at full blast. We were shivering from the cold, but we tried to endure it because we all understood that when the baby's heart stopped beating, the baby needed to be in the coldest environment possible…”, Ms. Dieu recalled.

No one pays, nor does it bring fame or glory, but PUN members still quietly look for patients in need, coordinate vehicles, call to confirm, and personally take each passenger to safety. For them, the safety and happiness of each patient is always put first, which is the motivation for each 0-dong trip to be complete and meaningful.

Ngoc Dieu and her husband (far right) brought the patient home safely. Photo: PUN - Journey of connecting love

Extending love

PUN not only "carries" love on the roads taking patients home, but also "carries" love to poor students, participates in blood donation to save lives and supports families in difficult circumstances during natural disasters and floods.

Ms. Trinh Thi Anh said: “From 2022, PUN will implement a program to support students with especially difficult circumstances but still maintain good academic performance and have the will to improve. Currently, the group is supporting 13 students in many provinces such as: Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La…”.

The support is implemented by school year, with direct transfers to the school at the beginning of each month. Depending on actual needs, children are provided with clothes, books, school supplies or essential foods such as: rice, cooking oil, salt, etc. All activities are reported in detail by the school from purchasing to image verification, to ensure transparency and create trust for donors.

Born in 2009, in Ta Pun village (Noong Heo commune, Lai Chau province), Lo Thi Tien (Thai ethnic) grew up in a poor family. Her father passed away when she was in grade 9, her mother was sick and could no longer work, making Tien's way to school full of hardship. Thanks to the support of the PUN volunteer group, she is supported with school supplies and essential items every month. Those gifts have become a great source of motivation, helping Tien persevere in going to school. "Thanks to the love and support of the uncles and aunts in the PUN group, I am more confident when going to school. I always appreciate and am grateful for each of those kindnesses and will try my best to study well so that in the future I can continue to send love and help others like the uncles and aunts have helped me," Tien shared.

Mr. Pham Kien Cuong, Vice Principal of Thanh An Secondary School (Dien Bien Province), said that PUN's support has brought about clear changes in the students' spiritual lives. "Lo Duc Manh, a 6th grade student at my school, suffered severe burns and grew up in a poor family, unable to afford hospital fees. Since receiving monthly support from PUN, he has become more confident and persistent in going to class. I hope to receive more help from benefactors for him," Mr. Cuong confided.

With Nam Khao Primary and Secondary Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities (Lai Chau province), PUN has supported many students from 2022 to present. Mr. Vu Xuan Khoa, Principal of the school expressed: “The school would like to express our deep gratitude to the members of the PUN group. We hope that in the coming time, PUN will continue to accompany and support many other students, so that their dreams of studying will always be nurtured and given wings.”

From accompanying students to overcome difficulties, PUN has expanded its scope of activities to many other fields. The group actively participates in blood donation, in which, on November 1, 4 members of the group were honored to receive a certificate of merit for their outstanding achievements in the voluntary blood donation movement in Hanoi in 2025 of the Hanoi Red Cross Society. In October, when floods occurred in Thai Nguyen, PUN immediately mobilized hundreds of life jackets, food, and provisions to people in difficulty. In addition, the group also carried out other practical activities such as: Installing water filters in schools and hospitals, contributing to improving community life and protecting people's health.

Ms. Trinh Thi Anh said that in the coming time, the group will continue to expand its volunteer activities, aiming to support more students, patients and other difficult circumstances, so that love and hope can spread to as many people as possible.

PUN volunteer group works with the Social Work Department of several hospitals in Hanoi. Photo: PUN - Journey of connecting love.

Four years have passed, PUN has quietly "carried" love to many places. Looking back at the days of wandering on the road, the sleepless nights taking care of every detail, each PUN member carries in their hearts the emotion of seeing patients return home safely, students confidently walk to class, or people in flood-affected areas receive timely help. Each journey, each gift, each smile received is proof of the dedication and kindness of the members of the PUN group - Journey of connecting love!

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/phong-su-dieu-tra/cuoc-thi-nhung-tam-guong-binh-di-ma-cao-quy-lan-thu-17/nhom-thien-nguyen-pun-va-hanh-trinh-cho-yeu-thuong-den-moi-neo-duong-1010638