An auction gala held on May 20, with the attendance of around 600 supporters including Vietnamese artists and businesspeople, raised over VND6 billion (US$300,000) for the Heartbeat Vietnam Fund to help more than 300 children with cardiovascular diseases.

The “Vet Seo Cuoc Doi 5” (Scar of Life 5) auction gala, which was organized at Ho Chi Minh City’s White Palace Convention Center, garnered $311,925 which will be used to pay for heart surgery for 311 children with cardiovascular diseases.

The money was collected by auctioning a slew of rare items including a handmade carpet from Iran, sold for VND105 million ($5,000), a watch plated with 44 diamonds worth over VND295 million ($14,000), and especially a Jade Buddha statue from Myanmar, which was carefully selected by Vietnamese actress Ngo Thanh Van, who is the Heartbeat Vietnam Fund’s ambassador and organizer of the show.

The statue, with a starting price of over VND210 million ($10,000), was finally bought by Vietnam-U.S. Society English Centers CEO Pham Tan Nghia at more than VND1.6 billion ($80,000).

Besides auctioning, the program also generated VND528 million ($25,000) thanks to the contributions of many businessmen.

The event also showcased “Silk,” a musical play inspired by Italian Alessandro Baricco’s namesake short novel published in 1996, re-written by Vietnamese songwriter Quoc Bao.

It included the performances of such famed artists as singers Hoang Bach, Dam Vinh Hung, Ho Trung Dung, violist Phuc Hanh, emcee Quynh Huong, and actor Thanh Loc.

Last year, the “Scar of Life 4” raised over VND3 billion ($144,800) while the organizers made over VND2.5 billion ($121,000) in 2012.

“Scar of Life,” jointly organized by Ngo Thanh Van’s company VAA and Heartbeat Vietnam Program, has helped save 1,028 children with cardiovascular diseases so far.

Apart from offering free heart surgery, the program also detects children who suffer heart defects to actively take care of them.

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