Most people use their birthday to take a well-earned break from work, choosing instead to spend time with close family and friends. Dr Chung Pham, however, is all too aware that some people don’t always have that luxury. Thousands of families across the world suffer the heartbreak of missed birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmases as they continue their search for their missing loved ones.

That’s why Chung decided to use her birthday to help raise an amazing £1,035.52 for Locate International. We are a volunteer-led charity and work all year round to help reunite UK missing people, missing people in Vietnam, and around the rest of the world.

Everybody at Locate International is incredibly grateful for this donation, as well as how hard Chung works every day, volunteering her time to provide a voice for those who don’t have one. Dave Grimstead, CEO of Locate International, thanked Chung and those who donated to her appeal.

“We would like to thank you for your generous donation. This is very gratefully received and, because all our team are volunteers, the entire donation goes to helping families locate loved ones.”

“Because of your donation, we can release funds to do more work to find missing persons, helping to locate people who have been missing for years or even decades. We will be able to do more work to identify Vietnamese nationals missing in the UK, which is an issue particularly close to our hearts and a shared commitment with Chung to help those who need it. The funding will also help us realise projects we have been working towards over recent months.”

It doesn’t matter how much or little you can give; we appreciate every donation, and it all goes a long way.

Who Is Dr. Chung Pham, and What Does She Do?

Dr Chung Pham was born in Vietnam and grew up in areas that are most affected by the devastation of human trafficking. Witnessing the heartbreak and suffering that these crimes can cause inspired Chung to help make change wherever she could.

She studied for several qualifications in Vietnam, Australia, and the UK, including earning a PhD in Philosophy. During her studies, and continuing after them, Chung volunteered her time to helping vulnerable Vietnamese nationals seek legal assistance in the UK. She also works tirelessly to help them locate missing family members, whom they have lost contact with during their journey to the UK.

Following her work, and after seeing first-hand the trauma that comes with these cases, Chung decided to volunteer with Locate International and has been with us since 2019. Chung is part of our operational advisory board and provides specialist advice and support to help Locate refine its work on cases of missing Vietnamese people.

Outside of her work with Locate, Chung also works with police forces across the UK to build a unique Capability and Capacity programme. This helps Law Enforcement Agencies and public service bodies to safeguard vulnerable children and adults correctly and robustly.

How Can I Help Identify or Find Missing People?

If you’re wondering how many people go missing in the UK every year, that’s an astonishing 180,000 people who have families desperate for answers. We want to provide long-awaited answers to loved ones, even if it’s been years or decades.

Just like Chung, you can help too. Even if you can only donate a small amount, Locate and the families of missing people are eternally grateful for every contribution.

If you want to make a donation yourself, you can click here to donate directly to Locate International via PayPal.

You can still contribute, even if you’re not able to donate money yourself. Chung utilised the Facebook donation feature, which allows users to ask their friends and families for donations. You can do this any time of year, though many use their birthdays to request donations instead of gifts.

Simply scroll down and tap “Raise money” when creating a Facebook status, and type Locate International CIO. We will receive 100% of any money you raise, and this will go directly to funding the efforts to solve missing people cases.