There is a man in Vietnam who has dedicated his life to giving a proper send-off to aborted babies. After respectfully burying more than 16,000, he decided to take it a step further and save babies from being aborted.
This touching story started in 2001 when Tong Phuoc Phuc and his pregnant wife went to the hospital. Tong noticed many pregnant women coming into the hospital but exiting without their babies.
They'd each had an abortion.
Heartbroken at the reality taking place before his very eyes, he asked for the bodies of all the aborted babies so as to give them a proper burial. It was the least Tong could do, or so he thought at the time.
Tong, a former construction worker, used his savings to buy land atop a mountain in Hon Thom, located in Nha Trang of central Vietnam. It was in this peaceful, scenic location that he was to lay these babies to rest.
Enlisting the help of charity volunteers who collaborate with Tong to retrieve corpses from hospitals, he has since given thousands of babies a proper burial.
Although his wife thought he had lost his marbles at first, Tong took it as his responsibility. He was acting not for himself but for all those lives. If he didn’t do this, then all those aborted babies would be disposed of as waste—but that should not happen, for babies “are a gift from God,” he exclaims.
In fact, the mere sight of his first baby graveyard, which contains 10,000 graves, has already achieved the effect of dissuading many expecting women—who traveled to the poignant setting to mull over their thoughts—from having an abortion.
“If I hadn’t come here, I would have had an abortion, too,” says Nhung Nguyen, as she sits beside her adorable little daughter, who was saved thanks to Tong’s efforts.
“Uncle Phuc (Tong) came to see me, persuaded me not to have an abortion, and promised to help,” she adds.
Nguyen, who cannot support her daughter herself, often visits her at Tong’s orphanage.
“I’m very happy when she comes,” says Tong.
That’s just one case; there are plenty more. Tong’s efforts are truly paying off.
One day, Tong decided to take his selfless endeavor to the next level, for it wasn’t enough to just bury aborted babies. Tong wanted to save babies before they were aborted. He wanted to give them a chance at life.
If the expecting lady didn’t want the baby, then he‘d offer to raise the baby himself. He tries to persuade these ladies, many of whom are young, not to make a decision they’ll regret for the rest of their lives. He advises them that he‘ll love and care for their babies, and if one day they want their babies back, they’d only need to say the word.
Since embarking on this path, Tong has managed to save hundreds of babies from abortion. Many are being raised in his orphanage, which he opened in Nha Trang City.
Moreover, there are 20 children living in his Nha Trang home, all of whom he raises as his own.
Another 50 babies are being raised in his second home in Cam Ranh, located some 43 miles south, thanks to the assistance provided by a local church, which Tong had reached out to for help.
In fact, if it wasn’t for all the assistance, it would be awfully challenging, if not impossible, for one man to handle this huge task alone.
“I’m getting more and more help,” says Tong. “Some people help me with actions, others bring things, rice and salt, for example. Others give money for educating and sheltering the children, to allow me to continue my work.”
Tong, who should be called a hero, says “I put my heart and soul into this.”
It’s clearly evident.
In addition to the children who are alive today thanks to his good heart, how many more he has saved through his actions is unknown.
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