Tears of stories of overcoming difficulties in studying

November 8, in Tuy Hoa city, province Phu Yen, Phu Yen Provincial Youth Union in coordination with the Newspaper Youth organized the awarding of “Support to School” scholarships to new university students, middle and high school students and teachers with difficulties in the area. Here, many touching stories about the journey of overcoming difficulties in studying were told.

"I wish my mother would no longer be sick"

Mrs. Ngo Thi No (living in Ward 9, Tuy Hoa City) stepped up to the podium when invited, looking haggard despite being only in her 50s. She said she still clearly remembered that in early August 8, she agreed to help take care of two children for a young mother who was slightly injured after being run over by a motorbike taxi. 

The woman had a non-local accent, and was holding a 1-month-old baby girl and leading a 2-month-old baby boy. That evening, the young mother did not return to pick up her children. When she dropped off the two children, the woman did not leave any information. 

When she heard the little girl crying loudly, Mrs. No's husband quickly ran to buy a can of milk to stir for her to drink. She waited until the next day, then the following week, but the woman was still nowhere to be found.

And so, Mrs. No and her husband raised the two children until today. In July 2, her husband passed away, and she was left alone. Luckily, she had two children to share with her. 

“Now I don’t think of them as adopted children. I love them as if they were my own children. When I heard that my children were going to college, I was so happy and tried to take care of them. I can’t live with them forever. They study to take care of their future,” she said in tears.

Hurriedly stepping down from the stage to help No's mother up was a petite first-year student from Phu Yen University, Ho Thi Bich Thuan, amid sobs from the entire hall. Throughout the conversation, although the host asked many times about her "adoptive mother" Ngo Thi No, Thuan still insisted "that's her mother". 

For Thuan, there is no concept of “foster mother” when talking about No’s mother. “For me, the biggest motivation for me to study is my mother. If I had a wish, the first wish might not come true, that is for my father to come back to life. The second wish is for my mother to be cured of her illness” – the new student confided.

Being taken care of by Mrs. No and her husband, despite living in difficult circumstances, as Thuan said, he feels very happy. Mrs. No has a congenital heart disease, so Thuan takes care of most of the housework. Many nights when studying, whenever Mrs. No coughs, Thuan jumps up like a spring, runs to get water to the bed so that his mother can take her medicine in time. "To be honest, I don't think I'll ever see my birth mother again. I'm happy with my mother" - Thuan confided.

“Try not to think too much about the situation”

That is the thought shared by Le Quang Dat, a first-year student majoring in Automotive Engineering at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology.

Not long after losing his father, Dat lost his mother during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dat's greatest pain was not being able to go to Ho Chi Minh City to take care of his sick mother because of the social distancing period. Viet Hoai, Dat's uncle, recalled: "Dat was very sad, his mood was condensed, he didn't want to confide in anyone. As an uncle, seeing his situation, I wanted to bring him back to take care of him, and also wanted to create the best conditions for him."

Dat and his younger sister moved to his uncle's house. His uncle's family was not very well off, but they had vegetables to eat vegetables and salt to eat salt. His uncle was determined to raise them so that they could study properly. One day he went to school, the other day he came home to help with housework, but as his classmates in class 2A1, Nguyen Hue High School, Tuy Hoa City said: "I have never seen Dat skip school. He is very sociable with his friends, it seems like I have never seen him sad."

Talking about this, Dat confided: “I simply think that if I keep being sad and thinking about my situation, I will never be able to move forward, so I try not to think too much about the past. I am grateful to everyone who has helped me. I will try my best in my studies to have a bright future, so as not to let my teachers and uncles down.”

Dat and Thuan are two new students who received the special scholarship "Support to school" from the Newspaper. Youth, each scholarship is 50 million VND for 4 years of study.

At the ceremony, Ms. Ho Thi Nguyen Thao, Vice Chairman of Phu Yen Provincial People's Committee, said: "Phu Yen Province will continue to care for the lives of local people. Especially social security programs. However, we also hope for the support of sponsors, philanthropists, and scholarship funds so that in the future, Phu Yen students, and Phu Yen teachers who, for some reason, encounter difficulties, can overcome them and be confident on the podium and in the classroom."

Box: Awarding 180 scholarships and support

Newspaper Representative Youth announced the ceremony of awarding the "Tiep suc den truong" scholarship to 60 new students with difficult circumstances, 100 scholarships for orphaned and mountainous secondary and high school students and 20 teachers with difficult circumstances in Phu Yen province. The total cost of the program is more than 1,67 billion VND sponsored by the "Nghia tinh Phu Yen" Club. Each scholarship for new students is worth 15 million VND, including 2 special scholarships worth 50 million VND/4 years and 5,5 million VND/scholarship for secondary and high school students. In addition, the program also awarded 20 gifts to teachers with especially difficult circumstances in Phu Yen province, each gift worth 11 million VND.

Tuoi Tre Newspaper's 2024 "Supporting students to school" scholarship program is for more than 1.100 new students in difficult circumstances nationwide with a total cost of more than 20 billion VND.

“The message from those who help you today is just two words “give”. Therefore, do not think about who you have to repay or how. Be confident in receiving this first help in life with a belief in human kindness. And this is a gift for your dreams. This is a reward for those who have tried hard to study, daring to believe that one day they will no longer be poor and miserable” – Ms. Truong Bao Chau, Deputy General Secretary of the Editorial Board of the Newspaper Youth, Share with students receiving scholarships at the ceremony.