Anna Dang: Bridging traditional and modern
College student passionate about ministering to Vietnamese youth, women’s rights
Published: August 27, 2019
What social justice issue are you passionate about?
“Currently I am very passionate about women’s rights. It’s a very popular topic right now, about freedom and personal expression and the abortion question.”
Staying connected to faith and culture is important for Anna Dang.
While attending college, Dang, 21, continues to attend Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Barling and be an active participant in youth ministry, particularly the Vietnamese community’s youth program called Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Ministry.
It is an international organization that nourishes children’s faith from childhood through the teen years. While children receive their sacramental education through Catholic schools and the parish religious education programs, they supplement this education with VEYM.
Dang opted to become a youth leader working with 10 to 12 year olds and attends annual training sessions in Texas to further her qualifications.
“Youth leaders can earn an unlimited number of scarves through annual training,” she said. “Leaders can continue to study their faith into their 80s. It’s grueling, but it’s also fun and really good for the soul.”
She has just returned from Marian Days in Carthage, Mo., where, with her community, she cooked and served meals for the almost 100,000 Vietnamese pilgrims who visit annually.
At University of Arkansas Fort Smith, where Dang is a biochemistry/pre-med
Article source: https://www.arkansas-catholic.org/news/article/6173/Anna-Dang-Bridging-traditional-and-modern