Paula's Fundraising Page for the 2010 Vietnam Aid Expedition

Recently my friend Debra DeWitt suggested we participate in a Vietnam Aid Expedition. We had talked many times about traveling to Vietnam and the Catalyst Foundation offered a wonderful opportunity to work side by side with other volunteers in the village of Rach Gia in southwest Vietnam.

In Rach Gia, there are over 200 families living on a garbage dump. They sell garbage scraps for pennies a day. Catalyst programs provide access to education, increase economic opportunities and generate a sense of empowerment--in the hopes of improving the lives of those families living in extreme poverty who are vulnerable to child trafficking.

Debra and I have been friends for many years and I was lucky enough to greet Debra and Lee at the airport when they brought home their beautiful "burrito" baby girl from Vietnam. I remember thinking how tiny she was, and how profoundly her life would be changed living here in Georgia with her new family.

An Chi's now a smart, funny girl of seven--I'm thrilled to be traveling with her on her first trip to Vietnam.