Many meaningful activities for children during Humanitarian Month

Many community-oriented activities during "Humanitarian Month" have left a lasting impression with meaningful and practical actions for those in difficult circumstances, including many children. The care, visits, and practical gifts will provide the children with resources and motivation to broaden their path to school, to give wings to their dreams, and, more importantly, to ensure they always feel the love and affection of the community.

Le Van Khang, a fourth-grade student at Van Hai Primary School (Kim Son district), has lived with his paternal grandparents since he was a child. Khang's father died in an accident, and his mother remarried, leaving the child orphaned and longing for the warmth of parental love. Khang's grandparents, both over 60 years old, despite their difficult economic circumstances, do everything they can to earn money to support their orphaned grandson's education.

During the recent Humanitarian Month in 2023, Khang and dozens of other underprivileged children in Kim Son district received a meaningful gift from a sponsor: bicycles to help them get to school more easily. Khang was happy to try riding his new bike on the wide village road.

"This brand-new bicycle is my dream. With a new bike, I can ride to school by myself without needing my grandparents to pick me up and drop me off. I'm very grateful for this gift, and I will take good care of it so I can use it for a long time," Khang happily said.

Next school year, 2023-2024, Nguyen Dang Khoa will enter the 3rd grade at Le Hong Phong Primary School (Tam Diep City). His eyes are bright, but tinged with sadness and still reflect the pain from the radiation treatments he's undergone to combat leukemia. Khoa says he hopes to recover soon so he can attend school regularly, study, and play like his friends. That's his only dream. Self-driving cars and gifts no longer hold much interest for him.

Khoa is the second of three siblings. His family is classified as near-poor; his mother is self-employed, and his father is a car mechanic. Khoa's treatment journey has been very difficult due to the significant financial resources required.

Ms. Ngo Thi Le, Principal of Le Hong Phong Primary School, said: "Given Khoa's special circumstances, during the closing ceremony of the 2022-2023 school year, the school mobilized teachers, parents, and students to contribute and raise funds to support Khoa's treatment. Nearly 30 million VND was raised and handed directly to Khoa and his family. Although the amount is not large, it represents the affection, love, and meaningful encouragement that teachers and friends have given to Khoa, hoping that he will recover soon and return to school."

Over the years, alongside teaching and learning activities, Le Hong Phong Primary School has paid special attention to and done well in humanitarian and charitable activities, especially during Humanitarian Month, in many forms such as: mobilizing members inside and outside the school's Red Cross branch to participate in fundraising campaigns; launching campaigns to support poor students, victims of Agent Orange, etc.

This year marks the third year the school has implemented the "Helping Students Overcome Difficulties to Go to School" scholarship fundraising program. Specifically in the 2022-2023 school year, the school has raised funds for 5 scholarships, providing 500,000 VND per student per month for 9 months.

With its practical significance, the scholarship fund has spread and continues to attract the attention and support of parents, philanthropists, etc., enabling more students from disadvantaged backgrounds to benefit from the fund. This, in turn, inspires, nurtures, and educates students about compassion and sharing.

Many meaningful activities for children during Humanitarian Month. — Many underprivileged children in Yen Khanh district received bicycles as gifts during Humanitarian Month.

Over the years, children from impoverished households and those in particularly difficult circumstances have always been the focus of attention, support, and love from all levels of government, localities, organizations, and the entire community. Especially during the Humanitarian Month held annually in May, children are always the priority, receiving the most practical support and assistance.

Right at the launch ceremony of the 2023 Humanitarian Month with the theme "From the heart of each of us - Working together to build a compassionate community," the "Good people, good deeds - Working together to build a compassionate community" movement, organized in Yen Khanh district, donated milk to over 1,000 students of Khanh Hong and Khanh Hai kindergartens; 13 bicycles to students with particularly difficult circumstances; and provided regular support to 4 humanitarian addresses in Yen Khanh district.

Continuing the activities of the 2023 Humanitarian Month, the various levels of the Association have mobilized and implemented many activities to support the poor and those facing sudden difficulties, including a significant number of children.

Typical activities include: giving gifts, scholarships, supporting medical expenses, providing regular assistance, emergency relief, donating milk, bicycles, wheelchairs, building and repairing "Red Cross" houses; providing charitable meals; donating helmets, providing dental check-ups for children; donating cakes and milk to kindergarten students; giving gifts to patients being treated at Ninh Binh Lung Hospital… contributing to encouraging and helping those in need to overcome difficulties in life. The total value of gifts donated during the Humanitarian Month is over 1 billion VND.

Mr. Bui Trong Ky, Chairman of the Provincial Red Cross Society, said: For children facing particularly difficult circumstances, the Provincial Red Cross Society has also written articles for publication in newspapers such as Tien Phong, Dan Tri, Ninh Binh Newspaper, the Central Red Cross Society's online newspaper, the Provincial Red Cross Society, the Humanitarian Magazine, Humanitarian Television... and social media platforms to mobilize support.

Typical examples include providing over 500 million VND to Nguyen Gia Long, a child in Yen Lam commune (Yen Mo district) suffering from a serious illness, supporting four orphaned children in Yen Dong commune (Yen Mo district) with over 800 million VND for their education; providing over 50 million VND to Ms. Phuong and her children in Ninh My commune (Hoa Lu district) for house repairs, and many other exemplary emergency relief activities...

In the first six months of 2023, emergency relief and humanitarian assistance activities achieved positive results. Red Cross branches at all levels mobilized organizations, individuals, and businesses to donate over 9 billion VND, assisting over 30,000 people in difficult circumstances, including many children; thereby contributing to ensuring social security. Notable examples of this activity include the Red Cross branches in Tam Diep city, Kim Son, Yen Khanh, Nho Quan, Gia Vien districts, and Ninh Binh city.

Text and photos: Dao Hang

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