DJ Lee and his wife Emily from Perth’s Le Vietnam have cemented as the quiet champions of their community after a recent social  media post showed Lee and a friend walking the streets of Perth late at night, handing out food and sleeping bags.

Lee said back in Le Vietnam’s early days he and Emily had got into the habit of emptying their pockets of loose change before doing the laundry. When they were at the shop they’d do the same, popping the coins into the tip jar. When the jars were full they’d take it to the bank and exchange it for cash, often handing out the extra notes to people they could see really needed it.

Lee said they soon realised buying food may be a better option, and so they began what Lee refers to as their “charity” called Banh Mi 4 Everyone out of Le Vietnam.

“One night at about 11pm we were finishing up the night of preparation. We stepped outside and it was freezing cold. We saw a guy curled up sleeping near our shop who didn’t have any shoes, so I took off my shoes and socks and gave them to him,” Lee said.

“We went home that night and the topic of conversation was how freezing it was and how it would be so cold for anyone to spend the night out on the streets. So the very next day we went to purchase about a dozen sleeping bags and, later that night, returned to the shop. We prepared some Banh Mis and drinks and started to hand it out with the sleeping bags.”

The social media image that was shared

Despite keeping what they were doing to themselves, Lee and Emily continued to head out regularly. Lee said it was something they did for the pure joy of it.

“We don’t really ask for donations or anything. We call it Banh Mi 4 Everyone because we believe Banh Mi is for everyone, whether they’re big, small, rich, poor. Everyone is equal and it should be available to everyone,” Lee said.

“We hand out Banh Mis nearly every week or two. We tend to make a few extra Banh Mis when we finish up for the week on a Friday afternoon and, while walking to the car, there are a few people we see everyday that we hand them out to.

“As for the nights, there are no specific days that we go. We often head out on Friday or Saturday nights and it’s usually in our free time.”

Lee said it’s become a running joke that he’s always ready to go camping as his car boot is often filled with sleeping bags – although his friends also know the real reason for it.

“On weekend nights when we head to the shop to prepare and its winter, we tend to make a dozen extra Banh Mis and hand them out with the sleeping bags, including with a with a bag filled with goodies such as drinks and pantry snacks,” he said.

“My parents taught me to always help people when they are in need. If you can brighten someone’s day then that glow will slowly spread and the world will become a much better place. My parents came to Australia with only their clothes and worked so hard, but were still able to help others.

“We wanted to share that same energy, and it’s not that hard.”

Lee said the feedback he’s received after being spotted has been phenomenal, and he regularly receives messages from people asking to help out or who have been inspired to do the same.

That being said, Lee and Emily are adamant they don’t really need any help when it comes to donations. Rather, Lee said, they’d prefer for others to lend a hand to someone less fortunate when they can.

“We are all very lucky people and some people aren’t, so our ‘bad’ day isn’t really bad when you see what’s out there on the streets,” he said.

“I purposely don’t take photos ever – and that’s actually one of our rule for any helpers – but if I could show you the faces that glow after we give them food and sleeping bags, that’s all that matters.”