Police lieutenant colonel sells land to set up charity car fleet

Long An Lieutenant Colonel Mai Van Chu, former deputy police chief of Can Giuoc town, sold his family's ancestral land, pooled money with friends to buy a car, and set up a charity emergency center.

In the early afternoon of May, the meal of the staff of the Can Giuoc District Charity Emergency Center was interrupted by the continuous ringing of the hotline. "A family in need just called to ask for help transferring a dying old lady from Cho Ray Hospital to her hometown in Tra On, Vinh Long," said Mr. Chu (55 years old), the center's operator, after guiding them through the necessary procedures.

Mr. Mai Van Chu received a call from the patient's family on the afternoon of May 10. Photo: Hoang Nam — Mr. Mai Van Chu received a call from the patient's family on the afternoon of May 10. Photo: *Hoang Nam*

Leaving their bowls of rice unfinished, the driver and two paramedics quickly prepared oxygen tanks, and the 9-seat ambulance started its engine immediately, turned on its siren, and headed to the location that needed help nearly 100 km away. After completing their mission, they returned to the center in the middle of the night. At this time, the lights were still on, and another team was on standby. From then until dawn the next day, the volunteers took on 4 other emergency cases.

After 4 years of operation, Mr. Chu said that was one of the "lightest" working days for the 22 drivers and emergency workers. Because of the peak holiday season, the center sometimes receives up to 25 cases a day and night. There are 4 ambulances, but the schedule is so tight that the vehicles have not yet cooled down before they have to continue their mission.

As a criminal investigator for many years, Mr. Chu said that during night patrols, he saw many people in critical condition, and the limited number of ambulances from hospitals reduced their chances of survival, which was very heartbreaking. The idea of a charity emergency center was born in him. In 2019, with one year left until retirement, Mr. Chu discussed with his wife and determined to make the idea come true.

To cover the expenses, they sold the 5,000 m2 ancestral land that their parents left them. At this time, Mr. Chu coincidentally met Mr. Bui Thanh Tung (54 years old, owner of a bakery business in Ho Chi Minh City), who was a charity ambulance driver. The two brothers shared the same ideals and then pooled their money to buy two cars and renovate an old house into an emergency center, with a total cost of more than 4 billion VND.

Initially, the center had only a few staff members, but later, seeing the group's effectiveness, the number of volunteers coming to participate increased, from police officers, union members to small traders, drivers, gardeners, car drivers, security guards, and motorbike taxi drivers. The center's staff were trained in first aid and basic patient care skills. In addition to transporting patients in Long An and Ho Chi Minh City, the center also transported seriously ill patients or bodies from hospitals back to their hometowns.

"There was even a case of a patient who rented a room in Ho Chi Minh City and died but was in difficult circumstances, the group also took the body back to be cremated and then returned the ashes to the family," said Mr. Tung.

Oxygen transport center staff before transferring a patient. Photo: Hoang Nam — Oxygen transport center staff before transferring a patient. Photo: *Hoang Nam*

Along with the ventilator system, the oxygen tanks at the center are provided free of charge by a unit. Over the years, to have operating funds, the center has received donations from kind-hearted people near and far. To ensure transparency, the center has a rule that it will not accept any expenses from the victim's family, and employees are not allowed to receive compensation.

"In addition to being supported with meals cooked on site, the brothers still jokingly say that here we only accept kindness. In many cases, seeing that the patient's family is suffering too much, the drivers do not have much money but still give them more out of their own pocket," Mr. Chu confided.

The number of people registering is increasing, from two 9-seat ambulances, the center is equipped with a 16-seat car. In appreciation of their kindness, a benefactor donated another 16-seat car. The former deputy police chief of the town said that on average, the group supports nearly 300 cases per month. At the center, there are always about 4 drivers and staff on duty to answer the hotline day and night. Each ambulance has a log number, clearly recording each emergency and transfer case for easy management and monitoring.

From Ben Tre to Ho Chi Minh City, selling coconuts at the market for two years has not been profitable, but for the past three months, every afternoon Phan Nguyen Minh Luan (19 years old) has driven his motorbike 50 km to and from work to help the truck team. Luan sells at the market with a member of the charity emergency center, and has heard him talk about his work many times, and admired him so much that he asked to join him.

Among the volunteers, the most special are two brothers Pham Hoai Vu (37 years old) and Pham Hoai Bao (36 years old). The two brothers were formerly drug addicts, but were reformed and educated by Mr. Chu and then quit their addictions and reformed. For the past two years, in addition to working as service drivers and selling fish at the market, in their free time they have come to the center to do volunteer work as a way to repay the favor.

Charity car on the road to transport patients. Photo: Hoang Nam — Charity car on the road to transport patients. Photo: *Hoang Nam*

Since the team was established, Mr. Chu has stayed at the center, only returning home occasionally to visit his wife and children. Mr. Tung also handed over the management of the facility to his wife, and brought his son to the center to support his colleagues. During the peak of Covid-19, the center only had 5 people on duty, and had to operate at full capacity every day, coming into contact with many patients, but fortunately everyone was safe and sound.

When asked about his future plans, the former police officer said that the center's staff are not afraid of hardships and are willing to continue contributing as long as they can. However, after many years of operation, the center's funding is currently very limited. On average, the center spends about 65 million VND per month on fuel for cars, not counting breakdowns, so it needs more support from the community.

Mr. Nguyen Trong Tai, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Can Giuoc town, said that in 4 years, the center has provided emergency care and transferred more than 8,000 cases to charity. "Thanks to the kindness of the brothers at the center, some critically ill patients have been saved, and many difficult lives have also been helped," Mr. Tai said.