Dear Brittany's Hope Friend,
I am Emma Keough, a junior at Lancaster Catholic High School, and for my Passion Project, I am raising funds for a cause close to my heart: the orphaned and abandoned children living in Children’s Homes in Vietnam. I first learned about these resilient children through my mom, who serves on the board of Brittany’s Hope. Watching how Brittany’s Hope events and fundraising efforts have transformed lives has inspired me to take action myself.
As a student-athlete, my original goal was simple but meaningful: to raise money for sports fields, courts, and equipment, giving children living in orphanages the joy of play, teamwork, confidence, and the ability to dream.
However, everything changed on September 28, 2025, when I saw a post on Brittany’s Hope Facebook page showing the devastation caused by Typhoon Bualoi in Ha Tinh Village, one of Brittany’s Hope Children’s Homes in Vietnam. The storm destroyed roofs, shattered doors, damaged solar panels, wiped out their garden, uprooted fruit trees, and flooded the home and classrooms.
What breaks my heart is that this superstorm disaster came just weeks after Typhoon Kajiki struck the same home, undoing all prior repairs and leaving the children without safe housing, electricity, and damaging their personal belongings. Knowing what these precious orphans have endured has inspired me to act quickly and adjust my fundraising goal to support their urgent needs.
So my project now has two stages:
- Immediate Relief & Repairs — Support Ha Tinh Village as they recover from the devastation of back-to-back typhoons, ensuring the children can return to safety and school.
- Sports & Play — Once the home is secure again, continue with my original mission to build a soccer field, sport court, and provide equipment that will connect, inspire, and bring joy to the children. And, it is my intention to meet these deserving children and deliver the items and support needed.
It is with excitement; my mom's co-Brittany’s Hope Board Members has generous offer to match every dollar raised will be matched up to $15,000 for the typhoon relief. I am very excited about this, and I hope you will join in the effort to give urgent relief and safety to the children of Ha Tinh Village.
If all aligns, in the spring of 2026, I plan to travel to Vietnam with a team to serve and have the opportunity meet the children and see the repair firsthand, deliver the sports equipment, and connect personally with the children whose lives we will have touched. Thank you taking the time to review this support opportunity, and thank you for your consideration.
Love, Emma
P. S. I decided that as soon as Ha Tinh Village is settled and the children are on a path to safely return to school, I will then continue with my original plan. As a lifelong student-athlete, I know how powerful sports can be—not just for physical health, but for confidence, friendships, and hope. When I saw the kids playing soccer barefoot or in worn shoes, their smiles still beaming, it moved me to give them more than a game. I want to give them a chance to feel like kids, to experience that moment when you’re not an orphan—you’re the one who scored the winning goal.