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We are pleased to be able to say that we have had a fantastic response to our appeal for the typhoon relief effort in Hue. Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far. We still have more to go, so watch this space for updates and a full report in the coming days.

For now though, here's some pictures of our collaboration with the local Red Cross to provide assistance to victims of the typhoon...

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Note: To enlarge the pictures on the left, simply click on them.

- Hue Help Team

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!

The Summer of 2009 is a wonderful summer for the children in the Home of Affection orphanage as they were able to participate in a number of interesting activities organized by Hue Help. Last Sunday, Hue Help organized a trip to Bach ma for all children and staff of the orphanage under the support of Miss Laura Chirot.

Swimming training program for 120 orphans in Hue ended successfully on August 13th, 2009 at Hue Sports Centre with over 120 participants, children and teachers from the orphanages: Home of Affection, Thanh going, An hoa, Nguyen Trai, 108 Chi lang and Antay in Hue. A swimming competition between over 30 children representing 7 different orphanages took place. Besides this, the children also performed rescue skills.

On 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.