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Sponsorship |
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School Scholarships
Without the school scholarships provided by HSCV these wonderful children would be forced to stop attending school. For only $50 you can sponsor an at risk child with a year of school fees. In return you will receive a photo, biography, and have the opportunity to exchange letters, pictures and drawings with the child. Donate $50 now, using paypal's safe and secure network For an additional $100 a year you can sponsor the child's family with a monthly donation of rice. This donation will provide the family with a much needed opportunity to purchase other necessities, such as vegetables, meat and personal items such as clothing and shoes. Donate $150 now, using paypal's safe and secure network. |
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July 2004
Time
In July HSCV took some large steps in the development of our food program, ran into problems with our hearing program, sponsored an eighty year-old grandmother’s cataract surgery, found a partner to help supply medical equipment to the birthing center in Vihn Quyhn, and completed the testing of a boy’s heart. In the middle of all this I took a two week holiday with a friend who was visiting from Minnesota. This is a long update so I’ve done my best to break it down into sections. Food Share Program This
program will supply families with a monthly allotment of rice. The goal
is to provide enough support to relieve the daily struggle to obtain rice,
a staple in the Vietnamese diet. This simple assistance will allow a family
to raise their standard of living and eventually no longer be in need
of assistance. Over the past three months we have identified 21 families
who qualify for the program. That was the easy part. The next steps involve
creating the program. During our visit we were able to see a food distribution day first hand. I was amazed on how smoothly and uneventful it was. On numerous occasions it had been explained to me how the program actually works, but until seeing it first hand it was left to my imagination and many unanswered questions. While our visit was short and the actual time we spent with COV’s Mrs. Huong and her staff was limited, we came away with a better understanding of their program’s goals, inner-workings, and benefits. It is
now our goal to have this program up and running at the beginning of September.
It will take many meetings and hopefully just enough cooperation from
the Vietnamese government, to get this program on its feet before I return
to the States. Testing Thang If you follow my updates you know that Van Anh is constantly in my thoughts. Around two months ago I was informed that her brother, while having normal legs, suffers from a similar cognitive heart disease. Thang is 16 and extremely small for his age. The same quiet shyness that surrounds Van Anh can be seen in Thang’s hidden smile. During the many hours of waiting he sits without complaint or hint of discomfort. Thang
was taken to the NIP to begin the process of diagnosing his heart condition.
After the doctor confirmed the heart disease we had to visit various parts
of the hospital to gather further information such as, an x – ray,
EKG, and Ultrasound. We were only able to get the EKG completed before
the hospital closed. Hearing After Dr. Mark McPherson and Dr. Ha’s successful trip to the school for the hearing impaired, I was hoping the follow-up testing would go smoothly. Unfortunately, this is a lesson I continually have to learn. Nothing ever goes as smoothly as envisioned. Dr. Ha has agreed to examine one child each evening at her home. However, the headmaster at the school has proven to be very difficult to work with and is unwilling to send his students to her home. It is his wishes that I send another team to his school. Unfortunately, this scenario is impossible. Dr. Ha has to work at the NIP everyday and can not take off, what would amount to, a whole week to examine the children. It’s more than enough that she is willing to volunteer her free time to see the children. This
is an issue that is currently the most frustrating for me. I hope over
the next few weeks I find a solution that will satisfy everyone, and burden
Dr. Ha the least. Le
Thi Hen Le Thi
Hen is 80 years-old and the sole provider for three of her grandchildren
(ages 9, 12, and15). Over the years her grandchildren have watched her
eye-site slowly deteriorate, mainly due to cataracts. HSCV determined
that the grandmother’s eye site has a direct affect on the children’s
quality of life. A sponsorship of a relatively simple cataract surgery
could change the future of the whole family. Mrs.
Hen was taken for a screening at the Hanoi eye clinic on a Thursday, and
that Friday afternoon she had surgery on her left eye. Unfortunately her
right eye is inoperable. I haven’t seen Mrs. Hen since the surgery,
but I am told her eye site has improved. She had a minor setback due to
some confusion with the medication, but things seem to on the right track.
Vihn Quyhn Birthing Clinic The Vihn
Quyhn Birthing Clinic is not something that I sought to find or support.
I was taken there due to some misunderstandings |
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Humanitarian
Services for Children of Vietnam was incorporated in September 2001. The
organization was granted 501(c)(3) status by the Internal Revenue Service
in April 2002. All donations to the organization are fully tax deductible.
HSCV is a non-sectarian organization, unaffiliated with any other organization. |
Hanoi
updates
and
poor communications, but after seeing it I realized they had very little
and a few simple pieces of medical equipment could help them tremendously.
A good friend of mine, Kirk Evans, runs