U70 old lady teaches swimming for free for two decades

For the past two decades, Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia, born in 1958 in Hung Thanh commune, Thap Muoi district, Dong Thap province, has been teaching swimming for free to children to prevent drowning.

Born and raised by rivers, Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia (also known as Sau Thia) always understands the fear of parents when their children play by the water. Therefore, when Hung Thanh commune (Thap Muoi district, Dong Thap province) implemented a project to popularize swimming for children, she did not hesitate to accept the responsibility. For her, teaching swimming is not only a job, but also a noble mission.

To help children protect themselves from water hazards, and she hopes that more and more children will learn to swim and swim well, so that there will be no more tragic drowning accidents.

According to her, in her younger years, Mrs. Sau Thia participated in the revolution, contributing to the struggle for national liberation. After the war, her family's life faced many difficulties, she had to do all kinds of jobs to make a living such as construction worker, rice planting, weeding.

Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia (also known as Sau Thia) has spent 20 years teaching free swimming to children in Dong Thap region.

"The dense river terrain in the Mekong Delta always poses a risk of drowning accidents for children. In fact, there have been many tragic drowning incidents for children, which have become a nightmare for many families. To minimize and prevent these incidents and accidents, I am determined to participate in a free swimming class with the desire to raise awareness and help children avoid unwanted accidents," Ms. Sau Thia said about the opportunity to teach free swimming to children.

At first, the conditions for teaching swimming were extremely difficult. The training area was just a small canal with shallow water. However, with creativity and dedication, Mrs. Sau personally built bamboo poles and fenced with nets to create a safe training space for the children. With perseverance, she taught the children basic swimming skills, helping them become more confident when entering the water.

By 2016, a philanthropist had invested in building an artificial swimming pool at the Hung Thanh Commune Community Learning and Cultural Center, and the conditions for teaching and learning swimming had been significantly improved. However, what made the class successful was still the love and dedication of Mrs. Sau Thia. She considered each student as her own child, kindly instructing and encouraging them. Thanks to that, after only a few lessons, the children were able to swim confidently.

Anh Tuan (Thap Muoi district, Dong Thap province) shared: “Before, I was afraid of water and kept diving. But since being taught by Mrs. Sau Thia, I can swim the whole river! Now I am no longer afraid of water and I love swimming.”

The good news spread far and wide, and many parents sent their children to swimming classes taught by Mrs. Sau Thia. Mr. Le Hong Duc in Truong Xuan commune, Thap Muoi district said that his hometown is in a river area with many rivers, canals and streams. He was very worried because his children and grandchildren did not know how to swim. Even though his house was far away, he still took advantage of the summer break to take his children and grandchildren to swimming lessons because he had heard that Mrs. Sau Thia had been teaching swimming for many years.

For over 20 years, Ms. Sau Thia has been a trusted companion of more than 5,000 children in and outside Hung Thanh commune on their journey to conquer swimming lanes. What is special is that all these classes are completely free.

Mr. Doan Van Tuan, Chairman of Hung Thanh Commune People's Committee, said: "Ms. Sau Thia's participation in popularizing swimming and preventing drowning for children has had great significance. Thanks to her, the risk of children drowning in the locality has significantly decreased."

When asked about the future of the swimming class, Ms. Sau Thia could not hide her worries. Being old and weak, she hopes to find successors to continue this meaningful work. “Free swimming lessons must come from the heart, from love for children. I hope to find people with the same passion to join hands to protect the children,” Ms. Sau Thia hopes.

After many years of dedication, Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia has been recognized with many noble awards. In 2020, Ms. Tran Thi Kim Thia was honored to receive the Third Class Labor Medal from the President. Previously, she was also honored to become the representative of Vietnam to be included in the list of 100 outstanding women in the world in 2017 voted by the British news agency BBC.

Source: https://congthuong.vn/dong-thap-ba-lao-u70-hai-thap-ky-day-boi-mien-phi-373162.html