Meaningfulness from free meals and home ancestral corners
Towards the 162nd Anniversary of National Hero Truong Dinh's Sacrifice Day (August 20, 1864 - August 20, 2026), in Go Cong ward and Gia Thuan commune, many charity groups from all over gathered to join hands to serve people and tourists from all directions.
According to records of the Organizing Committee of the Memorial Ceremony, from August 14 - 20, a charity delegation from Phu Quoc (An Giang) was on duty in Go Cong ward, preparing about 1,000 vegetarian meals per day with a changed menu such as banh xeo, bun, banh canh, vegetarian hotpot... served free of charge.
Not only cooking on the spot, the members of the delegation also coordinated with local people to burn fire to wrap and cook more than 2,000 banh tet cakes and make about 10,000 vegetarian buns to send to people attending the ceremony.
In Gia Thuan commune, local charity groups were also on duty from August 18-20, providing thousands of free meals and drinking water from food donated by philanthropists from near and far.
The non-showing voluntary activities have contributed to creating a close and meaningful atmosphere during the days of commemoration of National Hero Truong Dinh - who is respected by the people with the title "Binh Tay Dai Nguyen Soai".
In particular, from the afternoon of August 18 to the end of August 20, people in many wards and communes in the area simultaneously set up altars to worship National Hero Truong Dinh in front of their houses. This voluntary and simple act shows respect for the leader of "Binh Tay Dai Nguyen Soai", creating an atmosphere like a warm common death anniversary of the community.
A stream of people come to pay tribute to "Marshal Binh Tay"
At the Special National Relic Truong Dinh Uprising Sites, belonging to Go Cong ward and Gia Thuan commune, memorial activities have taken place solemnly from many days before the main ceremony.
Many families bring their children and grandchildren to offer flowers and incense to commemorate the ancestors who bravely stood up against the French colonialists. For the people, the trip to the source is not only a journey of gratitude but also an opportunity to educate the young generation about the tradition of patriotism and the indomitable spirit of their ancestors.
From respectful incense sticks to free meals, from contributors to contributors, the voluntary response of the people has created a community-based memorial space.
This is the special highlight of this year's memorial ceremony when provincial-level memorial rituals blend with the sincere and voluntary feelings of the local people.
Rich series of cultural and sports activities towards holidays
According to Plan No. 3819/KH-SVHTTDL of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Dong Thap province, the memorial ceremony will be held from August 10 - 20 with many activities combining traditional rituals and cultural and sports programs.
In the ceremony part, on August 18, the memorial service at the General's tomb areas in Dong Son, Long Binh, Vinh Huu communes and the memorial service at the Fortress Relic in Tan Phu Dong commune took place.
On August 19th, the Tien Thuong ceremony and the ritual of inviting the tablet to worship the mortal is held at the Temple in Go Cong ward and Gia Thuan commune.
On the morning of August 20, delegations of central leaders, Military Region 9 and Dong Thap province will offer flowers and incense at the Truong Dinh Monument in Long Thuan ward, the Tomb and Temple of Truong Dinh in Go Cong ward and the Tomb of Mrs. Tran Thi Sanh. The official memorial service will take place at 9:30 am on August 20 at Truong Dinh Temple (Gia Thuan commune), with the staged art program "Binh Tay Dai Nguyen Soai".
Besides the ceremony part, the series of activities in the festival part is also organized richly. Among them, there is the "Returning to the Source" journey for 162 students of Truong Dinh High School; the Golden Bell Ringing Contest to learn about history with 200 contestants; thematic talks at Dong Thap University and Nguyen Quang Dieu Specialized High School.
Display and exhibition activities include the exhibition "Truong Dinh's resistance war against France through new historical documents", exploiting documents from Tu Duc Dynasty Chau Ban and French documents; the mobile library model "Theo mien Dien" (According to Heritage Region) and the display space of typical OCOP products.
The festival atmosphere is also extended by the Martial Arts Festival, traditional martial arts competitions, Folk Cake Contest, Chung nghi; the "Go Cong Echoes" amateur music program and the Cai Luong excerpt "Giong Son Quy Flag".
The series of activities not only expresses gratitude to the loyal army leader but also contributes to arousing historical pride, highlighting a beauty imbued with Go Cong - Dong Thap: cherishing history, cherishing affection and always preserving the tradition of "drinking water, remembering the source".
