Village teacher and the journey of sowing hope and nurturing knowledge for poor students

Leaving his hometown to take up the silent “ferryman” job in the sunny and windy Central Highlands, 18 years - a number long enough for Mr. Vu Van Tung (44 years old) - a teacher at Dinh Nup Primary and Secondary School (Po To commune, Ia Pa district, Gia Lai province ) to understand and feel more deeply for the difficult and unfortunate lives. With his dedication and persistent sacrifice, he not only helps students confidently go to school but also spreads humanistic values ​​through practical volunteer activities such as “Zero-dong bread cabinet” and supports building houses for disadvantaged students’ families.

Teacher Vu Van Tung (in white shirt) spreads humanistic values ​​through practical volunteer activities such as "Zero-VND Bread Cabinet" and supporting house building for disadvantaged students' families. Photo: Hien Mai

Don't let students drop out of school.

People often call Po To commune (Ia Pa district, Gia Lai province) "Po To hole" because this place is located in the southeast of Gia Lai province, the roads are difficult to travel, the people are extremely poor. Here, in the dry season, the sun is scorching, faces and clothes are covered with red dust; in the rainy season, the roads are muddy and slippery, few people want to go there unless there is something important. Yet, for nearly 20 years, on the journey of nurturing knowledge, the tireless footsteps of teacher Vu Van Tung have reached many remote villages here.

Talking about his life, Mr. Tung said that he came from a poor working family in Dien Chau district (Nghe An province). His childhood was a series of hard days, sometimes full, sometimes hungry. However, thanks to the kindness of his teachers in the past, the poor student had more motivation to weave his dream of learning, nurturing the aspiration of becoming a teacher to repay life.

With his tireless efforts, in 2005, Mr. Tung graduated with a major in History from Dalat University. In November 2007, Mr. Tung was recruited as a teacher and worked at Cu Chinh Lan Secondary School (Ia KDam Commune, Ia Pa District). In 2015, he volunteered to teach in a difficult area when Dinh Nup Primary and Secondary School, Po To Commune, Ia Pa District was established until now.

Motivating students to come to school as well as maintaining class attendance is a big challenge for teachers here. Photo: Hien Mai

The memories of the first days he set foot on this land are still intact in his mind. Mr. Tung said those were difficult days that he could never forget.

“When I worked here, I really understood the hardships that the people here had to endure. Here, the traffic conditions were very difficult, from home to school was 40 km but I had to travel for several hours. Not to mention, at that time, Po To commune had only over 380 households, of which nearly 90% were Ba Na ethnic people. Here, parents were not interested in their children's education, so motivating students to go to school as well as maintaining class attendance was a big challenge for teachers. Many times, I and other teachers went to parents' houses to persuade them to let their children go to school and received harsh words from the parents, some even chased them away. They said that children should stay home and work to earn money, going to school would not help the family. However, I was not discouraged, I was determined to send the children to school, if not one day then 2-3 days, until the parents agreed to let their children go to school" - Mr. Tung recalled.

Persistently every day, Mr. Tung coordinated with village elders and influential people in the Ba Na ethnic community to change the awareness of each family about the importance of sending their children to school. As a result, the dropout rate at school changed significantly, and parents were very welcome when they saw teachers visiting.

"I rely on my wife for all the housework. I myself work far from home, going back and forth 80km, not to mention the days I have to go up the mountain to find students and encourage them to go to school. There are days when I get home at 10pm, and there are even days when I have to sleep overnight at school" - Mr. Tung said.

In 2021, Mr. Tung decided to apply for a job near his home to support his wife and children. He also wanted to take care of his health after many years of traveling 80km every day. He sat in class writing the application and then went outside, causing students to accidentally see him.

When returning to class, the students said together: "Teacher, please don't leave us" . Only after this sentence from the students, the teacher decided to put away the file, give up teaching in the lowlands and continue to accompany the students until now.

Dinh Nup Primary and Secondary School is mostly home to Ba Na students. Photo: Hien Mai

Humanity "Zero-dong bread cabinet"

Mr. Tung not only fulfilled his teaching responsibilities but also paid special attention to the meals and lives of poor students. Working closely with the students here, Mr. Tung witnessed many students going to school hungry, and during recess, they would go home to find food to ease their hunger. Especially during the harvest season, the parents of the students went to the fields from early morning until late at night, many students had to take care of everything themselves.

From the thought of helping children have enough to go to school, having more motivation to go to school, Mr. Tung came up with the idea of ​​building a fund for students. After the appeal process, thanks to the contributions of some benefactors, he mobilized to build the fund. On December 5, 2021, "Zero-VND Bread Cabinet" officially went into operation.

At first, the “Zero-VND Bread Cabinet” only had enough funds to support about 60 loaves of bread for students in the remote area of ​​Bi Giong village school. From the teacher’s idea, a bakery owner accepted to support 60 loaves of bread to distribute on Monday morning. The bread was small and there were many students, so the students had to break it in half or in thirds to share. Feeling sorry for his students, teacher Tung used his salary to buy enough bread to distribute to more than 200 students on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays every week.

Gradually, the “Zero-VND Bread Cabinet” received regular support from philanthropists. From the second month onwards, thanks to contributions and sharing from friends and many kind-hearted people, Mr. Tung no longer had to spend his salary, but only spent his own efforts to get bread and regularly distribute it to his students. From the empty loaves of bread, the students enjoyed bread with milk and sausage; sometimes replaced by buns. The cost of buying bread to distribute to students was about 1 million VND/session.

Free breakfasts motivate poor students to go to school. Photo: Hien Mai

Every day for the past 3 years, at 4:30 a.m., teacher Tung sets off on his motorbike from his home (Chu Bah commune, Ayun Pa town) to school. On the 40km journey, he stops at a bakery to get breakfast for more than 200 students. At 6 a.m., the students line up neatly, eagerly receiving hot loaves of bread from their teacher.

Sharing about this project, Mr. Tung said: “Zero-dong Bread Cabinet” was born with the desire to bring free, warm and nutritious breakfasts to poor students, helping them to go to school full, focus on studying and overcome difficulties. With small portions of bread, we hope that the children will always feel the care and love from the community, as well as the belief that all efforts to study will be rewarded. The ultimate goal of “Zero-dong Bread Cabinet” is that no student will have to drop out of school because of hunger. We hope that all children in the supported area will have the opportunity to go to school and study fully.

After taking care of his students' stomachs, Mr. Tung saw other problems to keep students from disadvantaged areas coming to class, which are livelihoods and shelters. From 2021 to now, he has connected resources to donate 16 livelihood models, 4 houses, thousands of gifts, and dozens of tons of rice to poor students.

Aiming for a more long-term and sustainable solution, Mr. Tung continues to implement the model of "Giving a livelihood to poor students". "Zero-dong cake cabinet" has given 5 breeding goats worth more than 10 million VND and 6 breeding cows worth more than 70 million VND to 8 poor students with especially difficult circumstances. Up to now, the livestock have bred and grown well, contributing to the development of the family economy, creating motivation for students to stay in school and class.

Also from the mobilized funds, Mr. Tung bought 5 breeding cows and kept them in the local barns to build a long-term livelihood fund to support students with nearly 80 million VND. He also supported poor patients and students with medical treatment.

Sharing about his plans for the future, Mr. Tung said: “In the near future, I will expand the area of ​​operation, increase the number of bread cabinets to support more students. The project “Zero-VND Bread Cabinet” will not only provide bread but also provide different types of food to ensure nutrition for students. In addition, I will connect with schools, social organizations, and businesses to carry out volunteer activities together and the biggest goal is to build scholarship funds to support students with financial difficulties to continue their studies.”

With his tireless efforts, Mr. Tung has contributed to changing the lives of students and their families, bringing hope and knowledge to young students. "My work is still very small, but I hope it will bring good influences to life, partly helping students overcome difficulties and have more determination to rise up in life" - Mr. Tung confided.

Seeing his students full and smiling happily is teacher Tung's greatest wish. Photo: Hien Mai

With his tireless efforts for his students, in November 2023, Mr. Tung was one of 58 teachers working in disadvantaged areas selected to be honored in the program "Sharing with teachers" organized by the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in coordination with the Ministry of Education and Training. He was also honored by the Ministry of Education and Training as an outstanding teacher on the occasion of the 41st anniversary of Vietnamese Teachers' Day on November 20; and was honored by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor in the program "Glory of Vietnam" in 2024.

Some images of the project "Zero-dong Bread Cabinet" supporting housing for poor students overcoming difficulties; organizing the programs "Loving Tet", "Following students to school" to bring practical gifts to poor students. Photo: Hien Mai

Mr. Vu Van Tung was honored by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor in the program "Glory of Vietnam" in 2024. Photo: Provided by the character

Located in a difficult area with most of the students being Ba Na ethnic group, students often skip breakfast because of lack of conditions. Thanks to Mr. Tung's "0 Dong Bread Cabinet", students have a warm breakfast, go to school more regularly, and contribute to maintaining student numbers. In addition to preparing breakfast, for many years, Mr. Tung has also given necessities to students in especially difficult circumstances, and cows to students' families to increase production. The school highly appreciates and commends Mr. Tung's work."

Mr. Le Cong Tan - Principal of Dinh Nup Primary and Secondary School

Performed by: Hien Mai

Article and photos: Hien Mai

Source: https://congthuong.vn/gia-lai-thay-giao-lang-va-hanh-trinh-gioi-hy-vong-uom-mam-tri-thuc-cho-tro-ngheo-362683.html