Long Quang Pagoda in Vĩnh Long City has prepared 10,000 Tét cakes, 4,000 of which have been sent. Photo courtesy of thanhnien.vn

 by Trương An Phương

Many locals in southern provinces of Vĩnh Long and Kiên Giang have prepared different kinds of cakes to support people affected by floods in the Central region. 

Kiên Giang Province

Venerable Thích Minh Thái from Ngọc Giang Monastery and locals in the southern province of Kiên Giang have packed 5,000 coconut-leaf cakes and sent them to the disaster area.

“This is how Rạch Giá City responds to the call from the Provincial Fatherland Front Committee,” Venerable Thích Minh Thái said, adding that all related tasks and relief items have been approved by authorities. 

Nguyen Thị Thơm, 70, who lives in Tiền Giang Province, decided to visit Long Quang and take part in a charity event. Photo courtesy of thanhnien.vn

The official number of gifts transferred in phase 1 was 500. Each package included 10 kilos of rice, one box of noodles, different types of cakes, medicines, blankets, sweaters, and an envelope with VNĐ300,000.

Rạch Giá City hopes that its contribution can help locals in the Central provinces recover from the disaster.

“We cried when seeing images of people in the Central provinces submerged in floodwaters. We wanted to do something to share their difficulties. Even though the preparation process was hard, it is nothing compared to their suffering,” a member from a charity group in Rạch Giá City said.

Other groups and individuals have collected clothing and necessities such as noodles, drinking water, cold medicine, hand sanitisers, skin ointment, blankets and condensed milk in an effort to help people in need.

Locals in Rạch Giá City have packed 5,000 coconut-leaf cakes for people in the Central region. Photo courtesy of laodong.vn

Two benefactors have supported Rạch Giá City with a 16-tonne truck to transport goods and a car for the relief team heading to the Central area.

The vice chairman of the Việt Nam Fatherland Front Committee of Hướng Hoá District in Quảng Trị Province, Phan Minh Vinh, told Lao Động (Labour) newspaper that authorities are arranging schedules for the charity group led by Venerable Thích Minh Thái to visit locals and hand over the gifts.

“We are very thankful for Kiên Giang Province’s support during this difficult time,” Vinh said.

Vĩnh Long Province

Long Quang Pagoda in Vĩnh Long Province has made 10,000 Tét cakes (cylindrical glutinous rice cake) for locals in central provinces.

Though Nguyễn Thị Thơm, 70, lives in Tiền Giang Province, she decided to visit Long Quang and take part in the event. 

“I cannot contribute much. I hope that my Tét cakes can help as many people as possible,” Thơm said.

Meanwhile, Huỳnh Thanh Tâm, 58, a resident of Vĩnh Long City, handed over his business to his wife and left for the pagoda to donate his time. 

“I just told my wife that I would leave work early today to pack Tét cakes, and she immediately agreed,” he said, adding that he had packed a dozen cakes since the afternoon. 

Similar to Tâm, Nguyễn Thị Mỹ Linh, 26, applied for a three-day leave at her company to go to the pagoda.

Venerable Thích Minh Tịnh from Long Quang Pagoda initially thought of donating rice and noodles. However, considering that the region is flooded and probably out of electricity, it was more convenient to make Tét cakes.

Since the pagoda is relatively small in size, Venerable Thích Minh Tịnh contacted another location to pack 10,000 cakes. Coconut milk was not added to the mix so that the Tét cakes would last longer.

On the morning of October 23, the first batch of Tét cakes, consisting of 4,000 cakes, was sent.

Raw materials for the Tét cakes cost over VNĐ100 million. Between October 23 and 25, the pagoda, together with locals, continued to make more cakes for people in need. -VNS