huehelp's blog
After causing severe devastation in The Philippines, Typhoon Ketsana swept across the China Sea until it reached mainland South-East Asia. Its first stop was Central Vietnam. Ketsana has since calmed as it continued in-land to Cambodia.
The destruction and havoc caused by Ketsana was certainly greatest in the island state of The Philippines but the natural disaster has also taken its toll on Vietnam. The BBC has already reported that 85 people have been confirmed dead and that the number is set to rise. Many, many more are injured, hungry, homeless and in desperate need of help. The kids that we support are all healthy and safe but those that live outside the city have not been so lucky. The areas that have been worst affected are often rural communes that are difficult to reach due to continued flooding.
Summer 2009 was a great success for Hue Help. Our Home of Affection and Mobile Clinic Programmes continued to run smoothly, we reached 120 kids in our Summer Swimming Training Programme, and our very first Summer Volunteer Programme was fantastic. We would like to give our greatest thanks to our foreign volunteers: Sidonie Hasse, Sarah Avenell, Daniel Takagi, Georgia Graham, Nancy Walker, Lizzy Dimarco and Saskia Dean along with a myriad of Vietnamese volunteers for making this programme possible. We managed to reach and teach English to five children’s centres, one vocational training centre, one centre for supplementary education and the local blind association. We also found paid work for our more qualified teachers to help supplement the cost of their stay. And we mustn’t forget to congratulate Georgia and Nancy for making it into the local press for organising a fashion show for the kids in Thuy Bieu children’s centre! The creative genius of making clothes and accessories out of magazines and newspapers meant great fun was had by all. Well done girls!
Tiếng ViệtOn July 18th, 2009, Hue Help organized for children in Home of Affection Orphanage to visit tombs. The purpose of the trip is to help them understand more about the history of formation and development of the Nguyen dynasty.
I am pleased to say that our summer volunteer programme is now up and running successfully! We have been able to offer English teaching and cultural exchange to many areas of the community in Hue city. We have also successfully expanded the number of projects with which we work. Our newest volunteer opportunity works with the TT-Hue Blind Association. As well as offering all types of necessary assistance to the blind community, the Blind Association also offers an extremely good massage service. This service is run by the blind and is popular with foreigners.
Some media coverage of our Swimming for Safety program...
"On 1st July,2009 HueHelp organized the beginning of swimming training
term for 150 children living in Yet Kieu, Nguyen Trai, Chi village,
AnHoa, Thanhgiong and Tay An in association with ThuaThienHue's Union
of Friendship Organizations and Hue Sports Center.
The children will be trained swimming skills by the swiming teachers
in the center within 6 weeks. Program is not only to provide them the
swimming skills to help them respond to accidents related to water but
We have a goal that, within the next five years, all children living in shelters in Thua Thin Hue will be able to swim. On 1/7/2009 Hue Help collaborated with Thua Thien Hue's Union of Friendship Organisations and Hue Sport Center to launch this year’s Swimming for Safety program, with the participation of local leaders , orphanage managers and nearly 120 children.
Located within the framework of the summer activities that HueHelp has been implementing for orphans in Home of Affection, on 15th June, 2009, Hue Help organized for 18 children and Orphanage's management staff to go on holiday at Lang Co beach.
They greatly enjoyed to swim in the green sea of one of the most beautiful beach in the world. This is the opportunities for children to show their swimming skill that they have learned through the swimming training program for orphans sponsored by Hue Help in last
two years.
It's not often the kids at the Home of Affection shelter get to try international food. Last month though, thanks to the support of the DMZ bar and Little Italy, the children were given the opportunity to try pizza for the first time.
This was a great chance for the kids to experience a different kind of food. One Hue Help's main areas of focus is exposing the children to a variety of people, places and cultures. This will assist with a smooth transition to independence when the children become older.
To prepare for the International Volunteer Program in 2009 Summer on teaching English and entertaining orphans living in the Orphanages of Hue (May to August), on the 10th of May, Hue Help held a meeting between the Vietnamese volunteers on the plan. Most of them are enthusiastic students from Universities and Colleges in Hue.
At the meeting, Mr Joshua Zukas (Volunteer coordinator for Hue Help), explained the program and the regulations related to Child protection as well as the duties and powers of the volunteers in the program.
A lot of people have asked us recently why we focus on providing swimming lessons in the summer holidays. Why swimming?
According to the Vietnam Ministry of Health, around 10 children drown per day in Vietnam. This is markedly higher than many other countries; in the UK for example, around 1.2 people drown per day. In the province of Thua Thien Hue, where Hue Help is based, death by drowning is particularly high. The province is coastal, subject to annual flooding, and is home to South East Asia’s largest lagoon.
