An Eye-Opening Summer Service Trip in Vietnam

2024-07-29

To prepare Pooikeinians to become servant leaders with a global vision and make a positive impact in the community, the school has been dedicating unwavering efforts to nurture their servant hearts through various community service events. This summer, the Values Education Committee organized a transformative summer community service trip in Vietnam from July 23-29.

A dynamic team of 16 students across S2-S5, accompanied by 2 Values Education Committee teachers and 2 inspiring instructors from Teens Angel Family, embarked on a profound 7-day- 6-night journey to Cau Ke Town in Vietnam.

To uplift the spirits and forge unbreakable bonds, we spent one day in Ho Chi Minh City to learn about the history and culture of Vietnam.

We visited some local landmarks.

On the second day, it took the coach 4 hours to arrive at our service area in Cau Ke Town, Vietnam. We were humbled to visit the community library, which served as the cherished classroom for our English teaching. The library is built by ECO Vietnam Group, a local NGO serving the underprivileged in the area. The person in charge of the library introduced the NGO and its core values.

We are thankful to our school learning center which donated many English books to the community library. We achieved our first mission, which was carrying all the books and delivering them to the library joyfully.

Our second mission was to teach the local primary and secondary students English. Our team spent hours discussing, researching, and preparing learning packages for them. Again, the packages were printed and carried from Hong Kong to Vietnam.

Games, music, chitchat, and selfies were all magical ice-breaking activities that quickly bonded our students with the local ones.

Our students experienced struggles, breakthroughs, and appreciation through the teaching. Overall, it was the participation and kindness of the local students that motivated our students to do more and do better for them.

On the other hand, the local students were also teaching our students how to make Vietnamese spring rolls patiently.

“Can I take one?” and “Thank you” were always on their lips. The simplicity of life, the smiles, and the spirits of the local students deeply touched our students. They are grateful for all the games we prepared, the teaching materials, and the stationery we provided them.

The same warm smiles were seen from the local villagers whom we helped build the cement road. One can imagine the difficulties the villagers faced on the muddy road, especially during the rain.

Having no prior construction experience, our students listened to the instructors carefully and followed the locals’ steps step by step. Heavy rocks, muddy roads, and even sweat could not stop our students from building the road.

It was worth it to see how many villagers could benefit from walking on the cement road in the future, despite all the hard work.

Our students also built solar lamp posts to illuminate the path for the villagers in the dark of night, fulfilling a practical need while fostering a deep sense of purpose.

We feel profoundly grateful for the generous donations from our parents, principals and teachers. The HK$30,000 project fee covered the cost of the solar lamp posts, the cement road, and all the invaluable teaching resources for the library.

It was truly touching to see the solar lamp posts that we built from scratch provide light in the dark for the villagers.

At the farewell party, the 16 students and 4 teachers became a tight-knit family, united by our shared servant hearts and unbreakable camaraderie. Adorned in the vibrant local attire, we exuded a radiant and harmonious spirit, reflecting the transformative impact of our journey.

We also learned and danced the captivating traditional Vietnamese dances, and proudly sang our school hymn “the Stewards of the Lord”.

The captivating campfire on the last night was a poignant and memorable experience. The locals and our students built a genuine friendship, as their warm hospitality and our sincerity created a special connection that will resonate within us for a long time.

To celebrate the successful completion of the project, we indulged in a sublime 5-course French feast aboard the Princess Saigon. As a former French colony, this experience opened our eyes to the wonders of Vietnamese culinary artistry, influenced by the French colonial legacy, providing a fitting and magnificent culmination to our transformative journey, one that expanded our horizons and nourished our souls.

The students’ reflections and sharing each night in the hotel were truly touching. They gained a deeper understanding of the true meaning of service learning and acquired greater insight into their potential career or academic paths.

The service-learning trip cultivated our students’ perseverance, respect for others, responsibility, commitment, integrity, benevolence, and empathy. The biblical verse “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35) beautifully summarizes the essence of this life-changing expedition and the strong friendships forged.

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