One day at the end of August, Do Xuan Thanh tearfully held in his hand the admission notice from the University of Water Resources. A new journey had just begun for the poor student from Thanh Hoa who suffered from Hemophilia.
Despite having a rare disease, Do Xuan Thanh was a good student throughout all three years of high school - Photo: LUONG HUYEN
Caused by a genetic bleeding disorder linked to the X chromosome, Do Xuan Thanh’s childhood was a series of days writhing in pain that felt like death. Although he never once thought of giving up, the university journey ahead will be a big challenge for this friend.
Villagers contribute money to pay hospital bills
Thanh’s family’s ground-floor house is located near the end of Ham Ninh village, Hoang Trach commune, Hoang Hoa district (Thanh Hoa). In the scorching heat of the Central region, Thanh hobbled from the kitchen to the house, forcing himself to smile.
The student is tall, has a bright face but sad eyes behind thick glasses. He admits that he is quite a lively guy but is also sensitive and easily moved to tears. "Every time the disease relapses, the pain is so bad that I can't forget it," Thanh burst into tears.
At the age of 3, Thanh was diagnosed with Hemophilia. That was when he fell and bled from his tongue. Even though he was hospitalized and had the wound stitched, the bleeding was still profuse and could not be stopped. The situation was critical, so the hospital had to transfer him to Hanoi.
"The day we took our son away, my husband and I borrowed 10 million VND, but that was not enough. When the neighbors heard the news, they each contributed a little to help pay for the hospital bill," said Do Thi Huong - Thanh's mother, a hard-working woman who looked more haggard than her age, not yet 50 - choking with emotion.
It took two months of treatment for the wound on the tip of his tongue to heal, but his condition did not improve. Whenever the son complained of pain or his limbs swelled, the family rushed him to the hospital. There were times when the mother and son ate less home-cooked meals than the hospital meals.
His childhood was not as exciting as his friends in the neighborhood. Many times, he sat watching the boys playing soccer and felt envious. "I didn't get to play, and in fact, no one dared to play soccer with me, so I had to find joy through books," Thanh said.
Will not give up
Being a special candidate for graduation, Thanh was admitted to the Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering major at the University of Water Resources based on his high school transcript. Thanh is passionate about technology and has opened up several old phones to learn about the components inside. Thanh brags that because he cannot play sports, he spends his time learning about technology. And now he can write basic programming.
He was excited about the four years of college ahead. But the worry that his condition would worsen, leading to muscle atrophy or stiff joints, kept haunting Thanh. Taking advantage of the free days before school started, Thanh helped his parents with housework.
While preparing for lunch, the pain suddenly came. Without even packing his clothes, his father immediately took Thanh to Thanh Hoa General Hospital, nearly 20km from home, and admitted him.
Thanh Bao said he had lost count of the number of times he had been in and out of the hospital over the past ten years. After the doctor injected him with four doses of medicine and treated him like any other time, he felt the pain subside and immediately asked to go home to complete his admission paperwork in time.
Ms. Ngo Thi Hoai - the homeroom teacher - said that Thanh's family is poor, Thanh has a blood disease and has to be hospitalized for long-term treatment, but he always tries very hard, has the will to succeed and has never thought of giving up studying.
"Knowing the circumstances of Thanh and his family, the school created all conditions, exempted contributions, and the class also supported Thanh a lot. The precious thing is that every time we talked, he confided that he would try hard and was determined not to give up on studying," Ms. Hoai shared.
Over 1.3 billion VND in scholarships for new students in the North Central region
On the morning of October 5, Tuoi Tre newspaper will coordinate with Nghe An Provincial Youth Union to organize a ceremony to award scholarships to 86 new students with difficult circumstances from 4 provinces in the North Central region: Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh.
This is the second award in the 2023 Support to School scholarship program for new students under the 568th "For Tomorrow's Development" program of Tuoi Tre newspaper.
The total cost of the program is over 1.3 billion VND (not including travel, accommodation and gifts from the program), each scholarship is worth 15 million VND in cash and a special scholarship is 50 million VND for 4 years of study sponsored by the "Companion to Farmers" Fund - Binh Dien Fertilizer Joint Stock Company.
Nestlé Vietnam Co., Ltd. sponsored gifts for new students, Vinacam Scholarship Fund - Vinacam Group Joint Stock Company sponsored 4 laptops for new students with special difficulties who lack learning equipment.
Tuoi Tre Newspaper's 2023 Scholarship Program to Support Students in Difficult Situations nationwide with a total budget of over 19 billion VND. In addition to 86 new students in difficult circumstances from the four provinces of Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, and Quang Binh in the award ceremony on October 5, the Scholarship Program to Support Students in Difficult Situations is also organized in the following regions: Central, Central Highlands, Southeast, Mekong Delta; Northern and North Central provinces and cities.
Tuoitre.vn
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