A Charity Project Sharing Love
Link to the original article in Thanh Niên: https://thanhnien.vn/gioi-tre/du-an-tu-thien-chia-se-yeu-thuong-1044536.html
—
Light Charity's aspiration is to make Vietnam a better place to live. To achieve this, Light Charity has been carrying out truly meaningful projects every day.
Light Charity members organize clothing sales to raise funds for children with leukemia
This nonprofit organization was founded by Tạ Minh Tuấn — Chairman of TMT Group, founder of YUP Education, and Forbes 30 Under 30 ASIA honoree — and his student Hồ Đức Hải, CEO of Má Hải Group.
Bringing More “Light”
Light Charity means “charity of light,” so the organization's slogan is “become the light.” According to Tuấn, the name was chosen because light illuminates things and makes them clear. Light Charity was established with the aim of bringing transparency to charity in Vietnam. At the same time, light also makes society and the world better. “Through charity, we hope to bring more light into society and help make Vietnam a better place to live,” Tuấn said.
“Light is also something people turn toward from birth. Light Charity's ideal is expressed in its name,” Tuấn added.
Tuấn recalled visiting Buôn Ma Thuột City, Đắk Lắk, in early 2018. Seeing life there, he wanted to find a way to help local children. He subsequently became the sponsor covering all monthly blood transfusion and treatment costs for 4 children with leukemia in Đắk D’rông, Đắk Nông.
The 30-year-old then met his student Hồ Đức Hải, and together they resolved to approach charity professionally. Teacher and student recognized that far too many people needed help and were not receiving it. Meanwhile, many people wanted to give but could not reach the right recipients, or lacked trust, peace of mind, and transparency.
“We want to build an organization, a system connecting charitable giving and receiving. Then expand it into local communities throughout the country. From there, we aim to digitize charitable information nationwide and make it transparent,” Tuấn shared, explaining why Light Charity was founded.
To date, Light Charity has more than 700 members in provinces and cities including Hà Nội, Quảng Ngãi, Đà Nẵng, Đắk Lắk, Nha Trang, Ho Chi Minh City, and Cần Thơ.
Sharing love
The organization's first project is Light One, also called “1 Million+ Garments of Love.” The project connects people donating clothes with those who need them. Rather than giving clothes away, Light One sells them at a symbolic price of VND 2,000 per item. “Light One does not want to send the wrong message to vulnerable people, because people living in poverty have their own dignity; let them make a symbolic purchase. Proceeds from clothing sales help fund treatment for children with leukemia. In this way, Light One has an impact on all three groups: vulnerable people receiving used clothes (workers, disadvantaged students, and people living in poverty), children with leukemia, and members participating in the program. Members get to put their kindness into practice,” Hồ Đức Hải shared.
Hải said the project had helped 10,000 vulnerable people nationwide receive clothes. The symbolic proceeds from clothing sales are pooled into the “Giấc Mơ Đôi Chân Thiên Thần” fund, supporting treatment for 21 children with leukemia each month.
Soon, the group will launch its second project, Light Two, connecting book donors and recipients. Books collected will be sold to contribute to the fund and continue helping children with leukemia.
Tuấn shared that Light Charity will digitize its charitable activities in the future. It will become an information portal or a connecting platform for charity, allowing people to find charitable information nationwide and make giving more effective.