Moon of Compassion 2025: Giving Back to the Community Through Vietnamese Culture

The Mid-Autumn Festival has always been more than just a time of reunion. In Vietnamese culture, the season is deeply tied to kindness, compassion, and the belief that light should be shared. Families gather under the full moon, children parade with lanterns in hand, and mooncakes are exchanged as symbols of unity and togetherness. Yet, not every family has the privilege to celebrate in joy. Many children in disadvantaged communities still long for the warmth of Mid-Autumn nights.

At Vietnamese Language Studies (VLS), we believe that compassion must meet action. Each Mid-Autumn, we dedicate the season to a special charity campaign under a unique theme. For 2025, that theme is Moon of Compassion – Hội Trăng Nghĩa Tình, a CSR initiative that turns festive traditions into opportunities for giving back. The heart of the campaign remains simple: to create a brighter Mid-Autumn for underprivileged communities.

And the way we get there is through culture — by hosting workshops that invite international friends and locals alike to immerse themselves in Vietnamese traditions, connect with new people, enjoy the festive spirit in meaningful ways, and ultimately contribute to our fundraising efforts for the annual charity trip.

This year’s Moon of Compassion campaign continues the journey we have built over the past years: combining cultural immersion with meaningful social impact. By joining, you are not just discovering Vietnamese culture; you are also carrying forward a tradition of kindness — helping us bring hope, smiles, and opportunities to communities in need.

CSR at the Heart of Mid-Autumn

CSR is not just a concept at VLS; it is a practice rooted in empathy. Mid-Autumn is chosen because it embodies the values that CSR stands for: community, connection, and compassion. Instead of simply giving, we create a space where giving is tied to experiencing culture. Each workshop is both a celebration of tradition and a fundraiser, ensuring that every participant contributes to something meaningful beyond the workshop itself.

The profits from these activities directly support our annual charity trip, where volunteers, students, and donors work together to bring joy and practical support to local families. Over the years, we have installed solar-powered lighting systems in remote villages, provided clean water solutions, improved infrastructure, offered scholarships to children in need, and organized joyful activities for local families and children — from plays to games that bring everyone together. We have also worked to protect the environment by introducing sustainable practices and raising awareness about greener living. What began as a small act of kindness has grown into a tradition of giving, built on the belief that culture can be a bridge to compassion.

Lanterns of Hope: Crafting Light, Sharing Warmth

Perhaps nothing embodies the spirit of Mid-Autumn more vividly than the glowing lanterns that light up the night. In Vietnamese culture, the lantern is more than decoration; it is a symbol of hope, guidance, and togetherness. For children, lanterns are little sparks of magic, transforming an ordinary evening into a night of wonder and joy. For adults, their gentle glow is both nostalgic and heartwarming — echoing memories of carefree childhood nights, while rekindling a quiet happiness in watching their own children brighten the streets with the same innocent delight.

Our Lantern-Making Workshop brings this tradition to life. Participants step into a space filled with bamboo, colored cellophane, and colors, guided in crafting lanterns by hand. As you glue the colored cellophane onto the bamboo frame and decorate it with vibrant patterns, you are not just making an object; you are touching a story that has been passed down for generations.

For Vietnamese participants, the workshop is a gentle way to relive cherished childhood memories — the laughter, the glow, the joy of a lantern in hand. For our international friends, it becomes a doorway into the heart of Vietnamese culture, lived and experienced rather than just observed. And for everyone who joins, each lantern carries more than light; it carries kindness, as every creation contributes to our fundraising efforts, ensuring that children in Đồng Nai can also welcome the Mid-Autumn Festival with lanterns of their own.

Mooncakes of Love: Baking Traditions, Sharing Sweetness

If lanterns are the light of Mid-Autumn, mooncakes are its flavor. Sweet, rich, and full of symbolism, these festive pastries represent reunion and gratitude.

At the Mooncake Workshop, participants learn this tradition in the most hands-on way possible. From kneading dough to preparing fillings, from pressing patterns with beautiful molds to watching the golden crust bake to perfection, every step is a journey into heritage. By the end, you carry home a box of six mooncakes — beautifully packaged, delicious, and entirely your own creation.

But more importantly, the mooncakes you make are not just for yourself. Each one carries with it a gesture of kindness, as your participation helps bring the festive sweetness to children who might otherwise go without. In this way, every bite is more than a taste of tradition — it is a shared joy, a small piece of compassion passed from one heart to another.

Colors of Heritage: Painting Vietnam’s Stories

While lanterns and mooncakes light up the Mid-Autumn season, another treasure of Vietnamese culture lies in its art. Đông Hồ folk paintings are a centuries-old craft, created with woodblock printing and natural pigments. They depict everything from legends to daily life, from symbolic animals to scenes of prosperity and peace. For generations, these artworks have hung on the walls of Vietnamese homes, bringing color, joy, and hope.

In our Đông Hồ Folk Painting Workshop, participants discover this timeless craft. You will learn about the symbolism behind the motifs before trying your own hand at printing and coloring. Natural dyes — colors made from leaves, flowers, charred bamboo leaves, young red terracotta, and even crushed seashells — bring your work to life. At the end, you carry home a piece of art that is uniquely yours, yet deeply tied to Vietnamese tradition.

Beyond being a cultural treasure, the workshop is also a way to keep the craft alive. Every brushstroke helps preserve a heritage that has stood the test of time. And, as with the other workshops, every participation helps fuel our charity efforts, proving once again that Vietnamese culture is not only beautiful, but it is also powerful in its ability to give back.

Journey of Compassion: Bringing Mid-Autumn to Every Home

All these cultural experiences come together in one destination: the annual charity trip — the true heart of Moon of Compassion. After weeks of crafting, baking, and sharing, we gather as a community to bring that compassion to life in Đồng Nai.

What matters is not grand gestures, but the quiet impact they leave behind. Over the years, we have seen children walk safely under solar lights we installed, families drink clean water from filters we delivered, students pursue dreams through scholarships we provided, and entire villages brighten with lanterns and mooncakes shared in laughter. Each act may seem small, but together they weave a Mid-Autumn filled with hope.

In 2025, the mission continues. The trip will bring practical support, but also presence, care, and human connection. For the children of Đồng Nai, it is not only about receiving gifts, it is about feeling remembered, included, and celebrated. And for participants, it is the moment where culture and compassion unite, where CSR is lived in its most human form.

How You Can Contribute

Joining a workshop is the most joyful way to contribute. Each lantern, mooncake, or painting you create directly supports the charity trip. But even if you cannot attend, you can still be part of the journey. Donations — whether in cash at VLS or via bank transfer — are always welcome.

Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. All donations will be used transparently, with details shared directly with donors and publicly posted at VLS offices so you can see exactly how your kindness makes a difference. Your kindness may fund a child’s school supplies, light a home, or simply bring a smile that would not have been there otherwise. When combined, these acts of kindness form a tide of compassion strong enough to change lives.

Join Us in Spreading the Light

The Mid-Autumn Festival reminds us that the moon shines brightest when its light is shared. Through Moon of Compassion 2025, VLS invites you to share your light — whether by crafting a lantern, baking a mooncake, painting a folk masterpiece, or contributing directly. Together, we can transform tradition into charity and culture into compassion.

Follow us on social media for registration details and updates. We cannot wait to welcome you into this journey of Vietnamese culture, CSR, and heartfelt giving. Let’s spread the light of Mid-Autumn — beyond the festival night, into communities that need it most.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to our co-organizer, sponsors, and donors for their dedicated support and partnership in this meaningful Mid-Autumn Charity Program:

• Co-organization: Group A16

• Silver Sponsors: Lành Farm; Chu Yu Yi Architectural Development CO., LTD

• Donor: Công ty TNHH Bình Tiên Biên Hòa (Biti’s)