A 73-year-old man in Ho Chi Minh City walks more than 14 kilometers every day selling lottery tickets to make a living. Despite his modest means, he still sets aside more than $2,600 each year for charity.
In Ho Chi Minh City, 73-year-old Doan Van Thai, who lives in Hoa Binh Ward, is known locally as the “kind-hearted God of Wealth.” When selling lottery tickets on the streets, he often dresses up as Than Tai, the Vietnamese God of Wealth.
Thai remains upbeat as he goes about earning a living, almost always with a smile on his face. Yet few people know how much heartbreak lies behind that smile.
Appearing on episode 284 of the television program Go Cua Tham Nha, Thai spoke about the most painful periods of his life. He and his wife had only one daughter.
When their daughter was in sixth grade, however, she developed a brain condition. Desperate to save her, the couple did everything they could to earn money for treatment. Despite their efforts, she died at the age of 21.
Thai grows visibly somber as he recalls the painful losses in his life.
The loss of their only child devastated them. Though it felt as if their entire world had collapsed, the couple tried to support each other and carry on.
Not long after their daughter’s death, Thai’s wife was diagnosed with diabetes. Despite medication and dietary restrictions, her health gradually deteriorated over the years.
Complications eventually left her unable to work, and for a period she could do little more than remain in bed. Thai took responsibility for virtually everything at home and cared for her himself.
More than a year ago, after a long struggle with illness, his wife died. With both his wife and daughter gone, Thai was left alone in a home that no longer held the warmth of his family.
“When my wife was still alive, I sold lottery tickets using a motorbike because I needed to get home quickly at noon to take care of her,” he said. “Now the house is empty. There are no voices, no familiar figure there anymore. It’s very sad. Sometimes when I miss her, all I can do is open my phone and watch a video of her talking. It makes me feel a little less lonely."
“After she died, I stopped using the motorbike to sell lottery tickets. Now I walk, and I take my time going home because there is no longer anyone waiting for me, no one expecting me to come back to care for them or prepare a meal,” he said.
Giving nearly $2,600 a year to charity
Thai wears different costumes when selling lottery tickets to attract attention.Thai’s home is filled with certificates, commendations and letters of appreciation recognizing his charitable work.
For many years, Thai has been well known and loved by residents of the former Ward 5 in District 11, Ho Chi Minh City. Despite his own difficult circumstances, he continues to devote considerable time and effort to helping others.
On the program, 90-year-old Vo Thi Huynh, Thai’s neighbor in Hoa Binh Ward, said that whenever he makes money selling lottery tickets, he sets part of his earnings aside for charity.
Inside his small home in an alley off Lac Long Quan Street in Hoa Binh Ward, Thai displays numerous certificates of merit, letters of appreciation and commendations recognizing him as an exemplary citizen for his good deeds.
Elsewhere in the house, he keeps hundreds of different costumes. They come in a wide range of colors and styles, from modern and traditional outfits to clothing inspired by Vietnam’s ethnic minority communities.
He also owns costumes that allow him to portray mythological and historical characters, including Khuong Tu Nha and the God of Wealth. Whenever he heads out to sell lottery tickets, Thai dresses up and takes on a particular character.
Thai continues to make a living selling lottery tickets on the streets while setting aside part of his earnings for charity. Photos: Go Cua Tham Nha
These days, he wakes at 5 a.m. to begin getting into costume and starts selling lottery tickets at 6:30 a.m. He walks more than 14 kilometers around his neighborhood every day, selling more than 400 tickets.
After covering his living expenses, Thai uses part of what he earns to support charitable causes, donating cash and rice to disadvantaged people and providing scholarships to students from struggling families.
“Every day, I sell around 400 lottery tickets and make a profit of about $15,” he said. “I try to live carefully on half of that and set aside around $7.50 a day for charity. That works out to more than $2,600 a year to help people in need. When I first started, people laughed when they heard that someone selling lottery tickets was saving money for charity."
"They said I was poor but trying to act important - a street lottery seller pretending he could do charity. But it didn’t upset me. Charity has to come willingly from the heart. If you start calculating what you will get back, you cannot truly do it,” he said.
Vietnamnet.vn
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