Instead of surrendering to his cruel fate, Mr. Tung stood up and devoted his whole life to charity activities.
Through so much pain, Mr. Tung always smiles and looks forward: “My life is like a film, with ups and downs, happiness. But the important thing is that I am still embraced by this life, guiding me to become a good person.”
Choosing to live kindly after loss
Looking at Mr. Tung’s gentle smile and optimistic demeanor, few people can imagine what a bitter childhood he had. After all the hardships, he still chose to live a kind and honest life to help others.
Mr. Tung chose to live a kind life to help life and people. PHOTO: NVCC
Born into an incomplete family in Tuyen Duc (present-day Lam Dong), he was not able to live with his parents since the age of 4. He was adopted by another family in Nha Trang but still did not have a real home.
Fate did not smile on him when at the age of 15, he completely lost his support. Entering life, he became a vagrant "on the streets".
Mr. Tung made a living by shining shoes, selling newspapers, and climbing alleys and crossroads to earn every penny. On long nights, he would hide in a corner of the street, sometimes huddled under a bridge to find shelter.
There were days when no one shined his shoes or bought newspapers, so he waited for restaurants to close and begged for leftover rice to fill his stomach.
Mr. Tung transports wheelchairs to patients in difficult circumstances. PHOTO: NVCC
It was those difficult teenage years that shaped him into a strong person who understood the suffering of the poor. He sadly said: “Having experienced extreme poverty, I understand what the poor need most.”
In 1979, he enlisted in the army, and in 1981, he was seriously injured in a mission, with a disability rate of 21%. After being discharged from the army with poor health, he was always concerned with the question of "what can I do to help people in more difficult circumstances?"
And so in 1997, a special opportunity brought him to the blood donation center on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street (District 1). Without hesitation, he registered to donate blood with a simple thought: "I don't have money to help anyone, only health, so I'll donate blood."
He confided to us that donating blood is very good because it not only helps the community but also creates new blood, helping the circulatory system work better. That is why every 3 months, he is present at the blood donation center to perform this noble act. By the age of 60, he had donated more than 51 times.
When they saw him donating blood continuously, his family was very worried. But seeing that he was still healthy and still living happily, they silently supported and encouraged him. In particular, his children also chose to donate blood, although he never directly told them what to do.
A life to give
Tragedy struck when his youngest son passed away suddenly in 2019. In his grief, he decided to devote more time to charity work.
Soon after, he joined the 1,000 VND rice activity. This is a team founded in 2016 to send cheap, heartwarming meals to poor workers and patients in difficult circumstances.
Mr. Tung (second person on the left) and members of the rice group donated 1,000 banh chung packages to poor patients. PHOTO: VU PHUONG
Every Tuesday and Saturday morning, he shows up very early, arranging each lunch box and each soup bag to give to the people.
Not stopping there, he is also the Vice President of the "Blood donation, organ donation, tissue donation - HTC3" Club. He and Mr. Le Bang Yen (President of the Club) have been close comrades since their military service.
At first, they only contributed money to buy a wheelchair to support a seriously ill acquaintance. But then they thought bigger: “Why not help more disabled people?” From then on, they and their clubmates traveled everywhere, delivering wheelchairs to those in need. From Vinh Long, An Giang, Ca Mau to the Central region or remote areas.
The 1,000 VND rice group has many activities to care for people in difficult circumstances and poor patients. PHOTO: NVCC
He confided to us that the HTC3 team is always there when patients need wheelchairs: “In remote areas, there are roads that are too small to carry wheelchairs all the way in, so we carry them one by one to the patient’s home.”
Recalling the days of “eating together, sleeping together” at the zero-cost kitchen system (located at 13/114 Tran Van Hoang, Ward 9, Tan Binh District) during the Covid-19 pandemic, Mr. Tung said that he did not go home but stayed in the kitchen. Every day, he and his brothers and sisters in the group woke up very early to prepare ingredients and cook to serve the people.
Mr. Tung (first person, first row) and his teammates at the zero-dong rice kitchen system during the epidemic season.
PHOTO: NVCC
We asked him if he was worried about doing volunteer work during a dangerous epidemic, he just smiled and replied: "I don't have time to think about fear. I just know that people need me, I just do what I can."
Not only did he have the heart to help people in difficult circumstances while he was alive, he also wished to become a useful person when he died.
With that wish, in 2018, he registered to donate his body to medical science after his death. Four years later, he continued to register to donate tissues and organs with the hope of giving a chance to live to patients in critical condition.
Mr. Tung was awarded a medal for humanitarian work by the Vietnam Red Cross Society in 2015. PHOTO: NVCC
“Whether I live or die, I still want to do something. I want when I take my last breath, many other people will have a chance to live again,” he wished.
In 2015, Mr. Pham Van Tung was awarded a medal for humanitarian work by the Vietnam Red Cross Society. He has made outstanding achievements in humanitarian activities, contributing to building a strong Vietnam Red Cross Society.
In 2024, the "Blood donation, organ donation, tissue donation - HTC3" Club, of which he is the Vice Chairman, was awarded a certificate of merit by the Ho Chi Minh City Red Cross Society for its outstanding achievements in the work of the Society and the Red Cross movement in 2024.
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