Twins
for Hope went on its second official mission since its creation: Executive
Director Johanne Wagner and Mai Nguyen, our Vietnamese representative, had a
productive time from June 26 to July 4, 2017. They did what they love doing the
most: helping children in Vietnam, while meeting new partners who share the
very same passion.
Our
adventures started in the province of BaRia: we secured a room in a hotel sitting
on the beautiful coastline, in Vung Tau, by the East Sea. Twins for Hope
supports two centres in Ba Ria province: a vocational centre in Long Hai where
160 children attend training, and a centre run by a congregation of sisters
where they care for 60 youngsters, most of them suffering from disabilities.
Twins for Hope offered 3 bicycles to 3 children in Long Hai:
Thao (2001): Thao’s mom passed away and her father left. She lives with her uncle’s family and they are very poor. Thao has only completed a grade 5. She studies sewing.
Thuy (2005): Her father passed away
and her mother left. Thuy lives with her 80-year-old grandma. She is in grade
1.
Tuan (2000): His father passed away.
He lives with his mother who fishes. He is studying in grade 3 and is learning
to fix motorbikes.
In
Ba Ria, Mai and Johanne offered the sisters cooking seasonings, toothpaste,
toothbrushes, Advil, dental floss, soap, cleaning products and diapers. We
marveled at the great interactions between the children and their caregivers.
Those sisters are totally dedicated to the well being of the residents and we
were pleased to see how friendly everyone is.
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Following those 2 visits in Ba Ria province, Mai and
Johanne made their way back to Ho Chi Minh City to catch a flight to Pleiku, in
Gia Lai province (700 m above sea level) where we met with two valuable
partners who helped us access our destinations by way of motorbike. Over hills,
then dodging livestock (chickens, water buffalos, cows, dogs, pigs, goats) on a
dirt road filled with potholes, we made our way to Chư Sê (32 km) where we met a 56 year old
man who takes care of 72 children who otherwise would have nowhere else to go.
A note on the Father:
About 10 years ago, he was in a village and saw a group of villagers
trying to bury the corpse of a mother who had just died in labor. They believed
it was the baby’s fault. They were going to bury both of them, the baby alive,
stuffed in the mother’s tummy. Dad saw this, grabbed the baby and started
running. The villagers caught up with him, but the man promised to raise the
child, following her ancestors’ traditions.
As time went on he ended up with more and more kids under his care.
Over half of the
children are homeschooled by the father while the other ones are able to attend
some sort of education outside of the home. The oldest is even attending
University, thanks to the help of benefactors who pay for her tuition! Number
72 of the children had arrived the day before our visit: abandoned and found in
the woods nearby, he was brought over to the house. Newborn baby boy, maybe one
week old at most, barely 2 kg, he had not been examined by anyone. Johanne, mom
of 9, took a look at him, checking for the obvious, but her and Mai felt he
should be seen by a health care professional. Twins for Hope paid for transportation
of the man and the child to the nearest hospital and also paid for the medical
consultation. The baby boy was found to be healthy, to everyone’s relief. Twins
for Hope provided blankets for the household, as well as baby formula, diapers
and baby wipes to help out with the new addition.
Running out of time
on that day with several mechanical issues with a motorbike, the crew opted to
postpone our scheduled visit to Kon Tum to the following day. Also, the weather
seemed a bit too uncertain and we were concerned darkness would catch us.
Yes, we did see
lepers. No, we were not scared. Leprosy does not jump on you. We saw people
with beautiful smiles, who were obviously happy to see people who care enough
to go visit them. I can’t wait to bring over a group of people interested in
volunteering for a set period of time. This day was a memorable one!
Part 2 coming very soon... Stay tuned!
You are enjoying our adventures and what we do? Please visit our ''It's Also Back to School in Vietnam'' fundraising campaign and help us reach our goal!
