The 16th Annual “A Call to Vietnam” Benefit Dinner

6:30 p.m. – Registration

7:00-9:30 p.m. – Dinner and program

$35.00/person

Contact Sister Agnes Ly Thi Le (206-725-7164) or Dung Nguyen (206-383-9382) for more information and tickets.

REGISTER HERE

Since 2001, Sisters Agnes Ly Thi Le and Kay Burton have directed the project A Call To Vietnam which ministers to marginalized people in Vietnam.

The Sisters of the Holy Names work in collaboration with the Sisters of the Lovers of the Holy Cross in Vietnam. These Sisters provide education to poor families and services for disabled children and adults, pregnant teens, elderly people, and people called to religious life.

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About Last Year’s Benefit Dinner:

Extending a Hand – Seattle Benefit Dinner Continues the Tradition

By Sister Linda Riggers,SNJM

The founder of the congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Names once said, “As long as we go along  the same road together, let us extend a hand to one another.” Since 2003, when the A Call to Vietnam benefit dinners began, the words of Blessed Mother Marie Rose Durocher have been realized at the ACtV annual benefit dinner. Was it happenstance that brought Sister Agnes Ly Thi Le to Seattle and to the SNJM community when she left Vietnam in 1976? Or was it the guidance of Mother Rose and the Holy Spirit? In any case, the result is that Sister Agnes Le began to walk a common journey with the Vietnamese Catholic Community of the Seattle area, and with other friends. And together they have “extended a hand” to those in Vietnam who are most marginalized and in need.

At the 2015 benefit dinner, held in April at the Jumbo Restaurant on Seattle’s Rainier Avenue, it was clear that those who are journeying with Sister Agnes Le are strongly committed to reaching out once again. Mrs. Thanh Van Phan spoke to the guests about her experience as a volunteer near Hue, returning to her homeland with her nursing skills to lend a hand in the handicapped centers operated by the Sisters/Lovers of the Holy Cross. Paul Ngoc Nguyen and Ai Van Vu shared their gifts as emcees for this event, and Dung Nguyen once more carried the responsibility of organization and registration. A response of over $12,000 to the Fund-a-Child portion of the evening’s event showed that guests were ready to lend a hand and knew that together, they could make a very significant contribution toward meeting the needs of children who have special needs or whose families don’t have the funds for educational needs – textbooks, uniforms, tuition, boarding. Many songs were shared by talented singers; perhaps the song, “Companions on the Journey,” sung by the SNJMS present, captured the theme of journeying in solidarity and lending a hand.

Throughout the seven-course meal, the auction and raffles, the singing, the presentations and the funda-child invitation, there was a spirit of joy and enthusiasm. [Those individuals and business who contributed items and services to this successful evening are especially appreciated. They include: (bakery, flowers, Paul, ???] The Hoan Thien (young adult group) of the Seattle Vietnamese community provided the primary organization and leadership. The Sisters of the Holy Names continue to be grateful for the generosity of the 275 guests present that evening, and the underwriters of this event.