5 years of free haircuts for the poor

Mr. Dung cuts hair for a child in a charity program - Photo: TL

Accompanying the sick

Doctors and nurses often jokingly call Mr. Dung a “hard-working employee” of Quang Tri General Hospital. Because for the past 3 years, in addition to his house and shop, his time has been “divided” quite a bit for the hospital.

With a pair of hair scissors and a heart of charity, he has quietly brought joy to disadvantaged patients and their relatives. Although his work is quite busy, Mr. Dung has never felt tired. For him, there is nothing happier than being able to contribute to his own career.

Chatting in the hospital hallway, when the "special customers" gradually left because it was almost dinner time, Mr. Dung said that giving free haircuts to patients and their families had been something he had cherished for a long time.

Six years ago, his father was hospitalized for end-stage chronic kidney failure. Since then, Dung's father has been on a "long-term battle", having to go to the hospital for dialysis three times a week. During the days he spent in the hospital taking care of his father, he understood the difficulties and the burden on the hearts of patients and their families. He wanted to do something to help them.

With that wish, in early 2022, at the invitation of a group of hair salon owners, Mr. Dung participated in the free haircut activity at the Provincial General Hospital. Like everyone else, he hopes that this activity will be organized regularly and long-term so that patients and their relatives can ease some of their hardships.

However, due to the busy work schedule, the key members of the group gradually disappeared. The volunteer haircutting activity was at risk of being interrupted. Not wanting the program to end, Mr. Dung mobilized his salon staff to continue the free haircuts.

Since then, Mr. Dung and his staff at Dung Nguyen have been cutting hair for patients and their families at the Provincial General Hospital for nearly 3 years. On average, every 1-2 weeks, he spends an afternoon organizing the program. The haircutting locations are changed in many different departments and rooms.

Sometimes, he and his staff even go to the bedside to help cut the hair of seriously ill patients. “Every time I cut a patient’s hair, I feel very emotional. Recently, a patient with cancer asked me to cut his hair beautifully. He said that this might be the last time he got a haircut. Hearing that, my eyes blurred,” said Mr. Dung.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Hai, Head of Nursing Department, Provincial General Hospital said: “In recent times, patients and their families at the hospital have received attention and support from many charitable organizations and individuals, including volunteer hair cutting groups. Although working for free, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Dung's group has remained closely attached to the hospital, patients and their families. Not only that, he also supports many other vulnerable groups. We highly appreciate the kindness and good deeds of Mr. Dung and his staff.”

Help people even though you are in difficulty

Seeing Mr. Dung volunteering to cut hair all year round, some people find it strange. Because, they know, he is not yet well-off. Sharing about that, Mr. Dung said, he does not know when he will be rich. However, there is one thing he knows very well: his heart does not allow him to wait until favorable times to help life and people.

Before the Provincial General Hospital, Mr. Dung had spent 2 years going to the Provincial School for Disabled Children to give free haircuts to the students there. Up to now, this activity is still maintained regularly by him and the staff in the shop.

5 years of free haircuts for the poor

Mr. Dung and staff give gifts to children in ethnic minority areas - Photo: TL

Talking about what motivates him, Mr. Dung said that he understands the meaning of the saying: "A poor person helps a poor person". As the eldest son in a large family, Dung understands the hardships of his parents. Therefore, when he was in 9th grade, he made a living by doing many jobs, such as: painter, busboy, porter...

During his hard days of making a living, he found his passion and hope in hairdressing. Therefore, the young man from Quang Tri spent all his savings to learn the profession. After 3 years of saving, Mr. Dung boldly borrowed 50 million VND from his aunt to open a hair salon. “After opening the shop, I had a steady flow of customers. Many young people also came to ask for jobs and to learn the profession. Most of them were from difficult circumstances,” said Mr. Dung.

With a kind heart and grateful for the luck that his profession has given him, Mr. Dung always wants to help people. Therefore, not long after opening the shop, he followed in his teacher's charitable footsteps, giving free haircuts to students at the Provincial School for Disabled Children.

Seeing that he could do more meaningful things, he continued to help patients and their families at the Provincial General Hospital. Not stopping there, every year, he and his staff also contribute money to give gifts and free haircuts to the elderly and children in remote areas. "Now, volunteer haircuts have become a habit for me and the staff at the shop," Mr. Dung affirmed.

Our conversation with Mr. Dung continued with many touching stories. However, in the story, the barber shop owner never mentioned the difficulties even though he knew that it was an inevitable part of the job. He said that, besides the smiles of the disadvantaged, what warmed his heart the most was the happiness and desire to contribute of the staff and students every time they participated in volunteer haircuts. He believes that in the future, there will be more people following in his footsteps.

Tay Long

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/5-nam-cat-toc-mien-phi-cho-nguoi-ngheo-196021.htm