Background

A group of small businesses and nonprofit community-based organizations are launching a community-giving effort through two operations: Meals of Love, to bring meals, and Safety for All, to bring PPEs. VANGO participation is part of our ongoing COVID-19 relief efforts in USA and Vietnam.

What

The Operation on Meals of Love will deliver 10,000 meals prepared and packed by different restaurants and will be delivered in one day to healthcare workers, first responders, seniors, women at shelters, and vulnerable community members. In celebration of Mother’s Day, organizers also are preparing flower bouquets to distribute to mothers in need.

When

Media availability all day Friday, May 8, as volunteers prepare for special meal delivery and news conference at 10 a.m. Sunday, May 10, 2020 when volunteers will begin making meal deliveries.

Where

Rong Bien Restaurant at Grand Century Mall, 1111 Story Road, San Jose, CA

Who

The volunteers will adhere to physical-distancing guidelines at the parking lot for members of the news media as they detail their plans for food delivery in San Jose and surrounding communities. After the brief news conference, they will immediately begin delivering the food items, Mother’s Day bouquets, and other much-needed supplies.

Why

Almost every segment of the economy and many people’s livelihood have been greatly affected and compromised during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Yet, many members of the community have chosen to step up and give back in many ways to help their fellow neighbors.

“We would like to call on individual businesses to join us in this meaningful community wide effort,” said Tina Tien, owner of several popular Vietnamese restaurants in San Jose. “Their participation and contribution will make a positive difference for many people and will help showcase the strength of our community coming together during this grave time of need.”

Contact

Jennifer Chung, 408-623-5239 or jenn@foreverbeaumore.com

The Operation on Safety for All will be scheduled at a later date and will donate personal protective equipment (PPE) to healthcare workers at local clinics and nursing homes as well as to food workers at restaurants. The goal is to donate 10,000 units of PPE supplies.

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For more information about how to support VANGO Network COVID-19 relief efforts, feel free to contact us at 1-714-330-3589 or info@va-ngo.org.

To donate, please visit our donation page here.

Press Release

Contact:           Cathy Lam [cathylam@va-ngo.org, 1-714-330-3589]

Date:                Tuesday, May 5, 2020

 

Vietnamese American Non-Governmental Organization Network Awarded California Arts Council Artists in Communities Grant

State funds support “MEKONG—The Water’s Tales,” a project highlighting the music and life along the Mekong River, through a workshop series joining Southeast Asian diasporic communities in Northern California, exploring the crucial perspective of those who now live far away from but are still connected to and affected by their Mekong origins.

Hayward, CA – Yesterday the California Arts Council announced a grant award of $20,000.00 to Vietnamese American Non-Governmental Organization (VANGO) Network as part of its Artists in Communities program.

Vân-Ánh “Vanessa” Võ’s project “MEKONG—The Water’s Tales” uses the music of the Mekong as the thread between the peoples of the Greater Mekong Subregion to have a discussion about the lives who depend on the river, how their presence through history has affected the course of its path, and what that means for the future of the river and those who live upon it. This residency project will create a safe space where Bay Area Southeast Asian communities feel comfortable to explore and share in their experience through art. Additionally, she will be able to find understanding with and of these communities and to nourish the relationships between them in order to accurately and respectfully represent these cultures in this project. “MEKONG—The Water’s Tales” will engage members of these communities both in America and in the Greater Mekong Subregion to contribute to and inspire the creation of the new art works that will be part of the production itself, which is set to hold its world premiere at The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. in May 2021.

“We’re so excited to co-commission this project and support Vân-Ánh Võ’s efforts to bring the Southeast Asian community together through art and to present the music and traditions of these cultures in this way. And we feel so proud to be in the company of the amazing projects in California Arts Council’s Artists in Communities program,” said Thien-Nhien Luong, VANGO Network Board secretary and Design Capital Asia Co-founder and CEO.

 VANGO Network was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council of more than 1,500 grants awarded to nonprofit organizations and units of government throughout the state for their work in support of the agency’s mission to strengthen arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. The investment of nearly $30 million marks a more than $5 million increase over the previous fiscal year, and the largest in California Arts Council history.

Organizations were awarded grants across 15 different program areas addressing access, equity, and inclusion; community vibrancy; and arts learning and engagement; and directly benefiting our state’s communities, with youth, veterans, returned citizens, and California’s historically marginalized communities key among them. Successful projects aligned closely with the agency’s vision of a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the California Arts Council recognizes that some grantees may need to postpone, modify, or cancel their planned activities supported by CAC funds, due to state and local public health guidelines. The state arts agency is prioritizing flexibility in addressing these changes and supporting appropriate solutions for grantees.

“Creativity sits at the very heart of our identity as Californians and as a people. In this unprecedented moment, the need to understand, endure, and transcend our lived experiences through arts and culture is all the more relevant for each of us,” said Nashormeh Lindo, Chair of the California Arts Council. “The California Arts Council is proud to be able to offer more support through our grant programs than ever before, at a time when our communities’ need is perhaps greater than ever before. These grants will support immediate and lasting community impact by investing in arts businesses and cultural workers across the state.”

# # #

VANGO Network’s mission is to lead effective collaborations and strengthen the humanitarian, cultural, and development work by delivering capacity building workshops to underserved communities. Since 2004, member organizations have collaborated on ongoing projects in health education, arts and culture, childhood education, and personal/professional development both in the USA and Vietnam.

The California Arts Council is a state agency with a mission of strengthening arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. It supports local arts infrastructure and programming statewide through grants, initiatives, and services. The California Arts Council envisions a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts.

Members of the California Arts Council include: Chair Nashormeh Lindo, Vice Chair Jaime Galli, Larry Baza, Lilia Gonzales Chavez, Jodie Evans, Kathleen Gallegos, Stanlee Gatti, Donn K. Harris, Alex Israel, Consuelo Montoya, and Jonathan Moscone. Learn more at www.arts.ca.gov.

The California Arts Council is committed to increasing the accessibility of its online content. For language and accessibility assistance, visit http://arts.ca.gov/aboutus/language.php.

VANGO Network is joining ConnectNGive.org this Tuesday, May 5th, 2020 for Giving Tuesday.

Some nurses and doctors have been rationed down to 1 face mask a day due to COVID-19 related shortages. This challenges their work efficiency and safety, putting both themselves and their patients at risk. VANGO Network has stepped up to send donations despite the challenges coordinating with those on the frontline who are swamped with their COVID-19 response mission, dealing with layers of communication and lack of coordination. That was how ConnectNGive.org was born 3 weeks ago, to give donors and doctors a tool to easily manage donations coordinating so they can focus on their primary mission.

For the past 3 weeks, ConnectNGive.org has provided a platform to connect donors and recipients to address PPE needs by coordinating and tracking donations so that care providers can focus on what they do best without compromising their safety or quality of care and so that the PPEs that are available can be delivered efficiently and not go to waste. ConnectNGive.org has already registered 78 accounts (7 donors and 71 recipients, 63 of which provide medical care), and as of May 3rd, ConnectNGive.org had 72 open “help offers” (i.e. requests for donations and supplies).

To date, VANGO Network has sent 10,620 gloves, 3,995 N95 masks, 3,115 face shields, 1,255 gowns, 520 KN95 masks, 280 portable hand sanitizer units, 150 free-standing hand sanitizer units, and 15 intubation boxes to 22 recipients in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania through ConnectNGive.org. This includes:

(Click the links below to see their delivered, pending, and open help offers on the platform.)

• Community Health Partnerships (Santa Clara, CA)
• Silicon Valley Ambulance (San Jose, CA)
• Miyoco Medical Center (Fountain Valley, CA)
• Asian Health Services (Oakland, CA)
• Homewood Suites by Hilton (Port Richey, FL)
• Riverside Methodist Hospital (Marysville, OH)
• Morgan Hill PD (Morgan Hill, CA)
• Indian Health Center of Santa Clara Valley (San Jose, CA)
• Weiss Memorial Hospital (Chicago, IL)
• Scripps Hospital (San Diego, CA)
• Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA)
• APICHA Community Health Center (New York, NY)
• Gardner Health Services (San Jose, CA)
• Chinle Comprehensive Health Care Facility (Chinle, AZ)
• Nazareth Hospital (Philadelphia, PA)
• VMC Foundation (San Jose, CA)
• RotaCare Bay Area (San Jose, CA)
• AACI (San Jose, CA)
• School Health Clinics of Santa Clara County (San Jose, CA)
• LifeLong Medical Care (Oakland, CA)
• Planned Parenthood Mar Monte (San Jose, CA)
• North East Medical Services. (San Jose, CA)

 

ConnectNGive has made it easy for VANGO Network to streamline and track our COVID-19 relief efforts in USA thus far, but there are still many people who need our help.

If you are in need of PPE donations:

Please sign up with ConnectNGive.org so that organizations like VANGO Network can easily see and address your needs. For more information about how ConnectNGive.org can support your search for and tracking of PPE donations, click here.

If you are looking to help provide funding for PPE donations:

Please join us on this first Giving Tuesday and donate to VANGO Network to help provide PPEs to medical and healthcare professionals and essential workers, combating COVID-19 on the front lines. You can also sign up with ConnectNGive.org directly if that is more suitable to your needs.

From the bottom of our hearts, VANGO Network wants to express gratitude to each and every one of you for your support in VANGO COVID-19 relief efforts. The need is great, and we are slowly chipping away at it to keep our communities safe, now and in the future.

Thank you.

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More information about ConnectNGive.org:

ConnectNGive.org makes PPE donation easy for both donors and recipients, who can register their group at the click of a button.

Those looking for donations and supplies can easily post requests for needed resources.

 

And donating groups or individuals can easily respond to those requests.

 

The best part: ConnectNGive.org tracks these donations and keeps this information public, so everyone knows what’s going on and there’s no double donations.

For more information about ConnectNGive.org, please visit their website.

Or, for more information about how to support VANGO Network COVID-19 relief efforts, feel free to contact us at 1-714-330-3589 or info@va-ngo.org.