Christmas Fair for Poor Children
at Salesian Theologate, Vietnam
Blessed Philip Rinaldi Theologate, Ho Chi Minh, Viet Nam, 21 December 2019 – On Saturday, 21 December 2019, the Salesians of the Blessed Philip Rinaldi Theologate with the support of their aspirants and some other groups organized a Christmas fair for children who are studying in the school for poor children there from grades 1 to 9 together with children in their neighborhood.
There were around seven hundred children came to join this fair. Most of them were children of migrants who came to Ho chi Minh City from different provinces in the whole country of Vietnam for job opportunities. They could not afford their children’s school tuition in Ho Chi Minh City, so they sent them to our school for free.
The participants received free blue tickets in order to join games at 20 different game booths. Some games were easy for grades 1 to 5 and more difficult ones for grades 6 to 9. They would give a blue ticket to join a game they liked at a booth. If they won they would receive some yellow tickets used to exchange food or other things later.
The fair brought a lot of joy for the children who joined it. We could see their hands with many things and their faces radiant with fresh smiles. The Salesians through this fair wanted to bring joy to the children on this special occasion of Christmas. They also educated the children about joy of sharing and giving, of achieving something by their own effort, about gratitude and a sense of protecting the environment through keeping it clean.
Although the organizers and their cooperators were very tired after this event, they were all very happy and felt that they had received more than they had given. This was a very meaningful activity when preparing and waiting for Christmas, for Christ who is our joy, hope, love and peace.
May every one of us celebrate a very meaningful, joyful and peaceful Christmas through welcoming the Child Jesus to our soul and share His joy, hope, love and peace with others.
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