Happiness Saigon helps ACE turn bricks into a symbol of real change

As community-driven initiatives become increasingly media-savvy powered by viral videos, glossy content, and influencer rollouts, ACE has chosen a different path with this new project, executed in collaboration with Happiness Saigon. For over a decade, the NGO has quietly supported rural communities in Vietnam with clean water, disaster relief, and school tuition. Without fanfare. Without a comms team.

But this year, ACE launched its most ambitious mission yet: raising funds to build the first 21 permanent homes in 2026 – the starting point of a much larger goal to construct 1,555 houses for families in need, all while staying true to its hands-on, low-profile identity.

Their funding project, called The Brick of Will, begins with a simple yet powerful question: What can a single brick do? To ACE, the answer is profound. A brick symbolizes belief that small, deliberate actions, when multiplied, can lay the foundation for real change.

And so, the bricks hit the streets. Team members jog with “Action Bricks” in hand, sparking curiosity from passersby. At construction sites, school gates, and neighborhood corners, “Hope Bricks” appear, urging people to help raise the first 21 homes. In restaurants, gyms, and schools – everyday spaces where socially minded people gather – “Amplifier Bricks” quietly carry the message further. Each brick leads back to a dedicated microsite, where donations are tracked and progress is updated in real time.

“We believe that instead of talking about kindness, we should practice it and let that speak louder than any campaign,” said Colin Dixon, Founder of ACE. “A brick is nothing on its own. But once you act with it, people notice and ask questions. And that’s when the story begins to spread.”

The campaign has captured attention not through staged drama but through sincerity. Within just one week, donations rose by 126%, and major brands such as Audi Vietnam joined the effort by placing the brick at its flagship showroom.

“We’re not trying to manufacture emotion,” added Alan Cerutti, CEO of creative partner Happiness Saigon. “We’re simply creating space for a genuine story to be seen and felt.”

At its core, each ACE’s brick is not just about building houses. It’s a mindset: action over rhetoric, persistence over polish. For ACE, change starts when someone rolls up their sleeves and does the work.

If you believe small acts can build big change, start here with one brick.