Labor of Love

People are coming to Vietnam for many reasons. Some are visiting the country or vacationing in 'Nam for its historical sites, its people with peaceful rural scenery, beautiful beaches overlooked by grand mountains populated by valley hill tribes. As to business opportunities, the diversities of the fields required to rebuild the country have let others consider Vietnam as a potential place to invest. Vietnamese expatriates and veterans of foreign nationalities also are returning to Vietnam as part of the healing process to make peace with the past and to contribute.

Aline Rebeaud came to Vietnam from Switzerland as a young artist, in late 1992. Any traveler of Ms Rebeaud's age with a strong passion in art, certainly would seize the occasion to establish oneself as an emerging contemporary foreign artist in Vietnam: the country has so much to offer for inspiration in art creation. Aline sold her first painting, but the proceeds went straight into the aid relief initiative of her own for the street kids, the orphans and the handicapped. And that was a turning point in Aline's life for what was simply a venture to promote her art and painting vocation, now has become a personal mission to help the needy. They called her, Mother TIM (TIM for Heart in Vietnamese), sort of Mother Teresa of Bình Tân district, a Saigon outskirt where she founded the House of Luck (Maison de la chance or Maison-Chance for short) in 1993. It was then a small orphanage / Vocational Training Center which concept has now been expanded into the building of a Village with many facilities to accommodate more than 150 members. The Village of Luck soon will be inaugurated by the end of March 2010.

If Vietnam is your next travel destination, please take a chance to drop by Aline's Maison-Chance and see how your contribution can make a difference. You can also
visit the center online at maison-chance.org for more details.