8-day swimming course
Sáu Thia recounted that she lives alone, never married, and therefore frequently participates in social work and activities within the Women's Association of Hung Thanh commune. When the locality needed someone to teach swimming to prevent child drowning, she was chosen by the Association.
"After hearing what the other women said, I thought about it that night. This is a job no one has ever done before, and I wondered if I could do it. Seeing how often children drown, mainly because they don't know how to swim, I decided to accept the offer to teach swimming out of compassion for the children in my hometown," said Mrs. Sau Thia.
Mrs. Sau Thia's swimming class
Initially, when organizing swimming lessons, Ms. Sau Thia, along with the relevant departments of Hung Thanh commune, planted stakes in suitable sections of the river where the water level was neither too high nor too low and the current wasn't too strong, to create a safe swimming frame for children. Then, she went around persuading families to enroll their children in swimming lessons. Many initially doubted the swimming abilities of this "village teacher," but after witnessing her use of her arms to lift and support each child as they propelled them forward, and her thoughtful guidance on safe diving techniques, all the parents felt reassured.
Many children, guided by her, were able to confidently swim on their own after just 3-4 days. The first group of 14 students, aged 6-15, from poor working-class families in the hamlets of Hung Thanh commune, "graduated" from the 8-day free swimming course.
"My students were all tested by the district authorities and found to be able to swim satisfactorily. The number of students gradually increased, from 14 per class to 18-20, then over 20. Students weren't just from Hung Thanh commune, but also from neighboring communes. To date, I've taught over 5,000 children to swim. I'm very proud that, thanks to learning to swim, none of them have drowned. They've grown up to join the army, work in companies, and start families. Many of them work far away, and seeing my difficulties and the fact that I live alone, they always come home during holidays to give me money to save," Mrs. Sau Thia recounted.
Dedicated to guiding children in learning to swim.
"Mrs. Sau also taught the father and son how to swim."
After a period of teaching swimming by setting up makeshift swimming pools in the river, in 2016, a benefactor sponsored a plastic swimming pool for Ms. Sau Thia, which was placed at the Hung Thanh Commune Community Cultural and Learning Center, helping to make her swimming lessons safer and less strenuous.
Attending the swimming class that opened at the end of May 2023, we were very impressed by the skills and dedication of Mrs. Sau Thia. Her teaching method was practical and very approachable; she pointed out each child's mistakes so they could correct them themselves. In particular, she remembered the circumstances of each child; if a child missed a class, the "teacher in her 70s" would call them up to remind and criticize them so they would attend regularly and learn to swim quickly.
Cao Nguyen (11 years old) said: "I really like learning to swim, but my parents don't have time to teach me, so I asked to learn from Mrs. Sau. Mrs. Sau teaches very clearly; I learned to swim in just one day. Before, Mrs. Sau also taught my father and my older brother to swim."
I'm looking for someone who can continue my work teaching swimming to the children. Women often have families and can't dedicate all their time to teaching, while men demand payment before they'll accept the job. Currently, I'm asking the local authorities to find someone to continue this free swimming instruction. While the local community hasn't found someone, I will continue teaching the children until I'm no longer able to.
Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia (Six Thia)
Living in an area crisscrossed with canals and waterways, Mr. Le Hong Duc (from Hamlet 6, Kinh Hoi, Truong Xuan Commune) was worried about his two children not knowing how to swim, so he took his two children, Le Hong Hoa (13 years old) and Le Hong Tien (11 years old), to Mrs. Sau Thia's swimming class twice a day. "I have great confidence in entrusting my two children to Mrs. Sau Thia. Living in a riverside area, I was very worried that the children wouldn't know how to swim. Finding a place to teach children to swim in the countryside is very difficult, but luckily there's Mrs. Sau Thia's swimming class. I'm grateful for her kindness because after only a few days of lessons, my two children have learned to swim," Mr. Duc said.
Ms. Sau Thia said that what makes her happy is that after spending time teaching swimming to thousands of local children, parents trust her completely. Many parents with young children aged 2-3 years old have "ordered" her to teach their children to swim in a few years when they are older. "Seeing the children learn to swim thanks to my teaching, I feel at ease because they have been protected from drowning. I feel happy that I am contributing to the social welfare of the locality," she added.
Selling lottery tickets to raise money to buy swimsuits for children.
When she's not teaching swimming, Mrs. Sau Thia sells lottery tickets to make a living. On average, she sells 200 lottery tickets a day, earning 200,000 VND. She doesn't keep this money for herself but saves it to buy swimwear for her students as encouragement. To date, she has bought over 100 sets of swimwear for children.
"Every day, two simple meals are enough for me, so I save up money to buy swimsuits for the children as a gift. When the vendors heard I was ordering swimsuits for my swimming students, they sold them cheaply, and the place that printed the logo also offered a discount. I'm very happy that the community is joining hands with me to teach the children to swim," said Mrs. Sau Thia.
She said that the burden of age no longer allows her to teach swimming as well as before, especially since her eyesight is no longer sharp. She is unsure of the future of her swimming class because she hasn't found anyone who possesses the same dedication and passion for teaching children to swim as she does.
"I'm looking for someone who can continue my work teaching swimming to the children. Women have families and can't dedicate all their time to the children, and men demand payment before they'll teach. Currently, I'm asking the authorities to find someone to continue this free swimming instruction. While the local authorities haven't found someone, I will continue teaching the children until I can no longer do so," shared Mrs. Sau Thia.
According to Mr. Doan Van Tuan, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hung Thanh commune: "Hung Thanh commune is a flood-prone area, so the risk of drowning among children is very high. Since Ms. Sau Thia started teaching swimming for free, there have been no drowning incidents in the commune. The percentage of children of eligible age who have learned to swim in the commune annually always reaches over 95%. Ms. Sau Thia's work has contributed to ensuring local social welfare. We highly appreciate her swimming instruction activities."
Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia (Six Thia) has received numerous awards. In 2020, she was honored with the Third-Class Labor Medal from the President of Vietnam ; a Certificate of Merit from the Prime Minister for her outstanding achievements in providing free swimming lessons to children; and many other local awards. Forbes Vietnam magazine selected her among the top 20 most inspiring women in 2021.
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