From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian

TPO - The new valedictorians receiving scholarships from the 2024 Valedictorian Support Program believe that only through continuous learning can they overcome their inferiority complex, show filial piety to their parents and benefactors who have helped them and contribute to society.

TPO - The new valedictorians receiving scholarships from the 2024 Valedictorian Support Program believe that only through continuous learning can they overcome their inferiority complex, show filial piety to their parents and benefactors who have helped them and contribute to society.

On the morning of January 4, in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Tien Phong newspaper in collaboration with the Vietnam Young Talent Support Fund under the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union held a ceremony to honor and award the 2024 Valedictorian Scholarship.

Learning to overcome self-doubt and difficulties

As one of 95 students receiving scholarships, Le Van Loc (student of Hong Bang International University) expressed his gratitude to the benefactors who have helped him over the past time, from providing accommodation to creating conditions for him to go to school to study.

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian photo 1

Le Van Loc believes that only by constantly studying can one develop oneself. Photo: Duy Anh.

From a boy with a cleft lip and palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, Loc has worked hard to study and become a new university student thanks to the love and care of the nuns at the orphanage.

“In the past, I was self-conscious about everything. My parents leaving was a shortcoming. Why did my parents give birth to me and then abandon me and make me have an unfortunate body? If I am self-conscious and feel inferior, my life will not develop. From then on, I changed myself so as not to let down the help of the nuns and benefactors,” Loc choked up and said that when I grew up, I had the opportunity to meet, interact, and exchange, so my spirit became more open.

When asked how he chose to live and how he created his future, Loc said his life is one of gratitude. Grateful to his parents for creating him even though they did not take care of him. “The path I chose is the path of study. My future is a very long time ahead, so I have to study hard to succeed and have the opportunity to help disadvantaged children who do not have the conditions to go to school,” Loc said.

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian photo 2

Students receive scholarships from the program. In the photo, Mr. Pham Quy Trong, Deputy Director of the Southern Region Standing Office of the Central Propaganda Department, presents scholarships to new valedictorians. Photo: Duy Anh.

Unlike Loc, Tran Ngoc Anh Thy (first-year student of Business Administration at Thu Dau Mot University, Binh Duong province) has a special situation when her father died of a serious illness when Thy was only 17 months old.

The female student said that at that time, she tried to study hard to overcome difficulties. “When I went to school, many friends asked me if I missed my father, but at that time I was still young so I only heard what my family told me. Sometimes I felt lonely but I always tried to study hard and used that as motivation to improve myself every day,” Thy shared.

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian photo 3

Study to thank those who help you

Participating in the exchange program, the new valedictorian Phan Thai Ty (student majoring in Chemical Engineering Technology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry) said that he always wondered how to use his knowledge to improve himself, his family life and society.

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian photo 4

New valedictorian Phan Thai Ty. Photo: Duy Anh.

Before becoming a useful person to society, Ty always wanted to be a filial son, especially to his mother because she had to work hard and sacrifice a lot so that he could have the conditions to study like today.

“My biggest wish at this stage is to continue studying, to continue writing my dream so that one day I can return to repay all those who have helped me and hopefully have the opportunity to join the Tien Phong Newspaper's Stepping Up to Top Students program in the future,” Ty shared.

Being of the H'Mong ethnic group and born into a family of 7 siblings, Giang Van Dang (Faculty of Music Composition, Hue Academy of Music) said that because his family did not have the means, all of his siblings had to drop out of school after finishing 9th grade.

“I am the fifth child in my family, I am the luckiest one to be able to enter university. I think it is a big challenge for my family to send me to university” - Dang emotionally shared.

Talking about his dream, Dang said that he once thought of preserving the traditional beauty of the H'Mong people so that the whole country and further, the whole world would know about it. That is when he started studying at the Hue Academy of Music and he majored in music composition.

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to university valedictorian photo 5

From a child with cleft lip and cleft palate, abandoned at the foot of a bridge when he was still a newborn, to a university valedictorian, photo 6

Journalist Phung Cong Suong presents flowers to new valedictorian Giang Van Dang. Photo: Duy Anh.

“Last year, I took the entrance exam to Hue Academy of Music but I failed because I didn’t know much about that subject. After that, I stayed for another year to study intermediate level, this year I took the exam again and passed with a score of 38.25. That makes me really grateful that my efforts and hard work are rewarded” - Dang talks about his struggle.

Sharing his future dreams, the young student said he wants to apply the knowledge he has learned to write down his feelings to convey to everyone not only through words but also through emotions and feelings with music.

"I want to preserve those beautiful traditions for a long time and pass them on to my future children and to everyone around me," the new student expressed.