Volunteer group of specialized school in Ho Chi Minh City supports the Christmas dreams of disadvantaged children

After a long period of preparation, a group of students from specialized schools in Ho Chi Minh City, including Gifted High School, Le Hong Phong and Tran Dai Nghia, successfully carried out the first project of the initiative to accompany and nurture hope for disadvantaged children.

Alpha Project is a contribution of members from 3 specialized schools in Ho Chi Minh City.

On the morning of December 22, at the Southern Office of the Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives (SCDI) in Tan Phu District (HCMC), a group of students from specialized schools arrived early to rehearse for the final time the Christmas program taking place on the same day for disadvantaged children living at SCDI.

The program is the first event implemented under the framework of the Alpha Project, a volunteer initiative to serve the community by a group of students from three specialized schools in Ho Chi Minh City: Gifted High School - Ho Chi Minh National University, Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted and Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted with the support of the Southern SCDI Office.

In which, Alpha is the abbreviation of A – Advocating; L – Love; P – Providing; H – Hope; and A – Awakening.

Fueling dreams

Plant the seeds to know the dream

The Christmas program had a total of 38 children from grades 1 and 2 participating. In their cleanest and neatest clothes, the children were introduced to their older siblings.

After warming up with a fun flash mob dance performance led by high school students, children had the opportunity to learn about Christmas through a question and answer game with prizes.

And the children's answers were so interesting and genuine that they were almost choking. "Why are Christmas trees decorated on Christmas?", one child answered: "Because it's beautiful". "Why do people hang stockings on Christmas Eve?", one child answered: "To keep warm". "Why do Christmas trees usually have a pointed top?", one child answered: "To make it easier to cut and take home".

As the questions flowed, more and more little hands shot up with more enthusiasm than they had initially hesitated. Some children couldn’t quite read the question on the projection screen, and that was when a Project Alpha member quickly stepped in to help by using the microphone to read the question back.

When it came to writing letters to Santa Claus, some children who could not write clearly were assisted by their high school classmates. One clever child expressed very frankly in a letter asking for help to write for Santa Claus: "I want a car to take my girlfriend out for a ride."

Project Alpha members help children write down their dreams

But there are also children who do not understand the concept of "dream", or know what a wish is? That is when the members of Project Alpha help by explaining in the simplest way: "What is a dream?"

A model for breaking the cycle

The companionship and guidance of disadvantaged children that the Alpha Project team is carrying out is what Ms. Lam Ngoc Thuy, in charge of the Southern Office of SCDI, wants to aim for. She shared that this is the first time the center has received help from a group of high school students. Normally, the center only accepts university students majoring in social sciences from the third year onwards.

"You (Project Alpha) are an exception for me. I really appreciate your desire to help and contribute to the community, and hope that the group will become a 'role model' or 'idols' for children in difficult circumstances," said Ms. Thuy.

According to her, the center is helping 250 students from grades 1 to 12 in difficult circumstances throughout Ho Chi Minh City, collectively called "children in the cycle of breaking". These are children facing the risk of dropping out of school early and need support to be able to continue going to school.

SCDI children write letters to Santa Claus

"Children in need of breaking the cycle of lacking role models, role models, or idols of successful images in the right direction," Ms. Thuy shared. Therefore, through contact with groups of students from specialized schools in Ho Chi Minh City, disadvantaged children are expected to develop an idea of ​​a role model they want to become in the future.

Ms. Thuy said that SCDI works with the perspective of helping beneficiaries develop sustainably, not passively and dependently, and at the same time, elevates charity work in the direction of helping people step by step on the path to escape the poverty spiral and reach a better future. That is the reason she decided to accept the help of Alpha Group in the hope that disadvantaged children will have more motivation to continue their studies, and know that the future is always ahead.

The "Gen 1.0 of Project Alpha" members

Talking to Thanh Nien , Alpha Project Manager Phan Minh Khoi, an 11th grade student at the Gifted High School - Ho Chi Minh City National University, said that after a period of research, he and his like-minded friends decided to form a group to do volunteer work on their own to have the opportunity to experience and learn.

Alpha Project members and SCDI staff

"The group wants to do everything by hand, from coming up with ideas to actually doing each step. That's how we can proactively decide the value we bring," Khoi said, adding that this is what helps bring the most authentic feeling to the participating members.

An example of this experience comes from Tu Quyen, grade 11 - Gifted High School - Ho Chi Minh City National University, who is in charge of logistics for the group. She compared prices to find the best option before placing the order. However, an incident occurred during the delivery process, making it difficult for one of the gifts to arrive on time to be given to the disadvantaged children. Luckily, the last item was delivered the night before the event. "Luckily", she breathed a sigh of relief.

Member Hao Nhien, grade 10 student at Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted, said that each member of the Alpha Project takes on separate roles, like "puzzle pieces" that come together to create a complete picture. He is in charge of the group's content, including information on the Facebook Fanpage, and takes on the role of MC, planning performances for the Alpha Project's events.

Homemade art performance

The artist of the group is Tuyet Linh, a member of class 11 - Gifted High School. She is the one who created the mascot image for the Alpha Project Fanpage. The mascot chosen is the flamingo, a lucky bird chosen as the mascot for the group, always wearing a conical hat symbolizing Vietnam.

As for member Thao Chi, grade 11 - Gifted High School, specializes in planning group activities and also takes on the role of MC. For the first event, Thao Chi initially relied on available templates from school clubs and adjusted and supplemented them to suit the event for young children. She said she learned a lot through this.

A work by artist Tuyet Linh for the Christmas event

Photo: Alpha Project Fanpage on Facebook

Regarding the challenges in the implementation process, member Hoang Cam, grade 11 of Gifted High School, said that one of the difficulties when the group officially operated was that the study time was different, so gathering together for each planning was also a problem. Besides, finding funding for the events was also a challenge. Currently, the group operates based on the form of receiving sponsorship, and in the future it may implement other forms of fundraising.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhom-thien-nguyen-truong-chuyen-tphcm-tiep-suc-cho-uoc-mo-giang-sinh-cua-tre-co-nho-185241223105610649.htm