Woman serves disabled in region

And as the director of the Tu Luc Charity Centre in Ha Noi’s Trung Tu Ward, Phuong believes she has done just that.

The centre specialises in psychological evaluations and vocational training for disabled people under a programme called Three in o­ne.

"It means the disabled people will be first provided care and advice to overcome the challenges in their lives. Secondly, they will get vocational guidance to find stable jobs," said Phuong.

"And third, the centre will get them back to their homes," she said.

Phuong said working with physically and mentally handicapped children has always been a vocation for her.

As a Thang Long University student, Phuong taught in Hoa Binh Village, where many children suffering the effects of Agent Orange live. Phuong and other volunteers from her school built furniture, prepared dinners and cleaned rooms for the children they came to love.

Phuong said the children’s progress and new skills made her feel so happy she could have stayed in the village forever.

"For young people, there are many paths in the world, but for me, I choose to help disabled children," she said.

Phuong knew she could do more to help these unlucky children find their own paths in life.

With the support of professors, doctors and kind-hearted donors, a charitable fund was set up at the university in 2001. Phuong volunteered to take charge of the project.

The money they raised was donated to residents in Hoa Binh and Huu Nghi Villages and the Social Sponsor Centre.

Despite the long hours dedicated to raising money, Phuong said she never ignored her many duties at the Tu Luc centre.

A life of giving

Phuong has often spent her own hard-earned cash to give her charges a better life.

In February, the director saved up her money to buy clothing, rice and vegetables for the children at the centre.

Phuong also visits homeless shelters regularly to look for youth who need the centre’s care.

She even approached companies like the Kim Dong Publishing House and the Hai Chau Confectionery Company to make a donation to children in need.

Phuong immediately brought the funds to poverty stricken kids living in remote areas.

The director hopes to o­ne day have the support of a hospital so people using the centre can get help for free.

Phuong’s many charitable efforts have not gone unrecognised.

She won a US$10,000 prize for her work at the centre as part of Viet Nam Innovation Day, sponsored by the World Bank, last year.

In October of 2006, the Tu Luc Charity Centre was officially recognised by the Union of Information Applications and now has legal status as a non-profit organisation.