Vietnamese Student Association going strong during second year

Student Aniki Dien partakes in the VSA Thanksgiving potluck on Nov. 18.

The Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) hosted a Thanksgiving potluck event Friday night, Nov. 18 in the lounge at Johnson Residence Hall. At the event, they collected canned goods to donate to Harvesters.

The VSA’s next scheduled event will be ice skating at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 29 at Crown Center. According to Secretary Thao Van, the first 20 people to meet at 5:30 at Miller Nichols Library will get free admission and can carpool with the others. They will leave campus at 5:45. The event is described as “a chance for you to relax from all the hard studying.”

According to its RooGroups page, the VSA exists “to promote awareness, interest, and appreciation of the Vietnamese culture within the general student body and local communities.”

Officers include Van, Fundraising Coordinator Tien Le, President Julie Ho, Special Events Coordinator Khuong Phan and Vice President Lisa Phan.

According to its RooGroups page, the VSA “welcomes individuals from all cultures, ethnicities, and backgrounds; it serves to create cultural, social, and educational events and/or seminars that demonstrate the unique beauty of Vietnam and the passion of its people.”

“We like to promote awareness and the Vietnamese culture to the student body,” Van said. “We are also fundraising yearly to help with the unfortunate in Vietnam. We do numerous events that promote the culture and customs of Vietnam to any students or faculty interested.”

According to its RooGroups page, the VSA “is dedicated to serve the public through community service, teaching the Vietnamese language and culture, and building friendships beyond the college years.”

“Every year VSA picks a foundation to donate all the proceeds and fundraising money earned from the school year to a Vietnamese cause,” Van said. “VSA is pleased to announce that the Catalyst Foundation, which helps stop human trafficking in Vietnam, will be our donation destination this year.”

At the Health Sciences Health Fair in April 2011, the VSA members volunteered as translators for non-English speakers, as well as assisting in running the fair. The VSA will host a Christmas party on Dec. 16, with more information in the coming weeks. The theme for the Christmas party this year is Toys for Tots.

“Bring a newly wrapped gift as your entrance fee and we will donate all the toys and proceeds to the children who won’t be able to receive a gift this year,” Van said.

For more information, visit the UMKC-VSA Facebook page, or email Van at ttvw94@mail.umkc.edu.

mheiman@unews.com