The 2026 trip, stop by stop

The ten pagodas of the spring 2026 trip, from Sóc Trăng to Huế, in the order of the film, with a gift count only where a speaker gave one.

This page walks through the spring 2026 charity trip, from 11 to 21 March, stop by stop. It draws on the nine videos of the individual stops (one video covers two pagodas in Bình Thuận) and on the trip's film of more than two hours, so the pagodas follow the order of the film. The number of gift packages or people is given only where a speaker states it; otherwise the cell reads "not stated". Dates come from the video titles; there are no videos for 15, 16 and 19 March, so the page says nothing about those days.

Table of the stops

The Mekong Delta

Khánh Anh monastery, Sóc Trăng. The team gathered at the Victory hotel in Saigon and drove more than 320 kilometers south. Before the gifts there was a Dharma talk by the monastery's preaching monk, and a speaker offered prayers for the 200 people receiving gifts that day. He said that Vietnamese who live far from home in the U.S. come back to hand gifts in person to people in difficulty, people with disabilities receiving wheelchairs, and students.

Vĩnh Thái An pagoda, Bạc Liêu. On the early morning of 12 March the villagers heard a talk on gratitude before receiving gifts. A representative of the foundation said some people had received the foundation's monthly rice for over ten years.

Bình Châu and Bình Thuận

Khánh An pagoda, Bình Châu. Villagers waited under the shade of a tree. A representative of the team spoke of three groups: elderly people receiving monthly rice, people with disabilities who need wheelchairs, and students who once had scholarships twice a year but now receive occasional gifts. Each recipient also received a small string of prayer beads.

Giác Hải and Liên Hoa pagodas, Phan Thiết. According to the narration, Giác Hải is also the home region of the team leader. At Liên Hoa the main hall was about 90% finished, and a member of the group recalled the old main hall of about 20 years earlier. Chinese, Chăm and Kinh families sat together under one roof.

The Highlands and the central coast

Từ Hiếu pagoda, Đắk Lắk. This area is home to more than 50 ethnic groups. An older man who received a wheelchair said he was very glad. Venerable Thích Minh Nhựt stated plainly how the foundation works.

We do not distinguish by region, by religion or by ethnicity.

Venerable Thích Minh Nhựt, chairman

Diệu Tịnh pagoda, Phú Yên. This is one of the foundation's first pagodas, almost 20 years ago. At first the foundation gave lonely elderly people 10 kg of rice a month, then added wheelchairs, scholarships and one-off gifts. Cô Mỹ, who represented the foundation in the recent flood relief, told of being stuck for three or four days in the flood.

Đại Xuân pagoda, Quảng Nam. After seven hours of mountain road, the way was too narrow for the large bus and the team changed to small vehicles. Some villagers rowed across a river to receive gifts. One member of the group said that even when things were hard in the U.S., the foundation had kept this stop going without a break.

Phước Huệ pagoda, Đà Nẵng. The second stop of 20 March, where the team gave 200 gift packages. Local Buddhists helped to arrange them. A member of the group recalled that almost 20 years earlier the abbess lived in a run-down pagoda with no bed, yet always thought of the poor families around her.

The last stop in Huế

Diệu Viên pagoda, Huế. The narration says that each year the foundation visits ten pagodas in rotation, but Diệu Viên is an exception. The team leader said the foundation returns here every year.

Here we come back every year and give two or three times as much as anywhere else.

Venerable Thích Minh Nhựt, chairman

That day there were people in wheelchairs, blind visitors and sick children lying in their mothers' arms. The master of ceremonies said 52 children were present with disabilities linked to Agent Orange and with illness. Team members pushed wheelchairs, guided blind people and carried boxes of gifts.

Closing

The film closes with thanks to the donors and to the villagers who received the gifts, and with a hope to meet again on the Vietnam 2027 trip. The numbers on this page are only what speakers said on camera; where they did not say, we left the cell open rather than guess. We hope readers will find time to watch each video and see the faces at every stop.