Journey of Faith

(Baonghean) - 35 years of establishment and development, Nghe An Provincial Red Cross has always been a trusted address for the poor and vulnerable and has always been at the forefront of relief efforts, emergency rescue, response and prevention of natural disasters.

Trusted address of the poor

In Hoa Son commune, Anh Son district, everyone knows and feels sorry for the special family situation of Ms. Bui Thi Hung. Married in Hamlet 2, Hoa Son commune, since the 1990s, although having to work hard, the couple still lives in poverty. The first two children, Nguyen Thi Hien and Nguyen Thi Hoa, have suffered from hemolytic anemia since childhood, with enlarged livers and spleens. They had to run around hospitals in Vinh City and Hanoi but to no avail. Due to illness, both children had to drop out of school. In 2013, Mr. Mao died in a traffic accident, leaving Ms. Hung with an empty estate and sick children. In March 2014, her situation was known and helped by the Red Cross of Nghe An province, and the Red Cross staff regularly visited and encouraged her family. After that, a program to call for sponsorship was implemented. The association also produced a humanitarian television report on the situation of Ms. Hung’s family to appeal for kind hearts in the country and the world. Up to now, the amount of money that Ms. Hung and her children have received has reached hundreds of millions of VND, and her children have been able to go for medical examination and treatment.

In Thanh Mai commune, Thanh Chuong district, the couple Ha Quang Can and Tran Thi Lich are in a particularly difficult situation. Mr. Can suffered a work accident, suffered a traumatic brain injury and suffered from sequelae, occasionally having seizures, causing the whole family to suffer in many ways. In April 2014, officials of the Thanh Chuong district Red Cross Society went to the commune to grasp the situation and survey the reality of Mr. Can's family to find ways to help. After that, the provincial Red Cross Society decided to donate 30 million VND for the couple to build a new house,... Mr. Vo Ba Dinh - Permanent Vice President of the Thanh Chuong district Red Cross Society said that recently, the Red Cross Society has coordinated with agencies such as the Fatherland Front, the Military Command to build 4 new houses for people in particularly difficult circumstances, supporting more than 150 million VND for families affected by natural disasters, storms and floods,...

Provincial Red Cross Society gives gifts to the poor in Ky Son district.

Many models of support and assistance for the poor of the Association have achieved high results, creating a great spread in society. One of them is the campaign "Each organization and individual is associated with a humanitarian address". Launched 6 years ago, the campaign has truly become a humanitarian bridge, connecting the goodwill of everyone with difficult addresses. Through specific actions, the campaign has helped nearly 29,000 people in difficult circumstances with a total amount of more than 31 billion VND,... In addition, the Cow Bank project - Joining hands with poor districts and border communes to build new rural areas has been implemented in mountainous districts such as Ky Son, Que Phong, Tuong Duong, Con Cuong, Anh Son, Thanh Chuong, Hung Nguyen, Nam Dan, Nghi Loc, Yen Thanh,... Currently, the total herd of cows managed by the Nghe An Provincial Red Cross is more than 1,010 cows worth more than 10 billion VND. All of these cows are being raised directly by households and are growing well. Newly born calves continue to be added to the “bank” and continue to be transferred to other disadvantaged families, creating conditions for poor people to have access to sustainable livelihoods.

Disaster prevention and response

More than 10 years ago, the Nghi Quang and Nghi Tien estuaries of Nghi Loc district were bare mud flats. Red Cross staff personally planted the cuttings of mangrove, acacia, and parasol trees in the mud and then painstakingly cared for and protected them so that the first green shoots could survive and develop. Similarly, the estuaries of An Hoa, Son Hai, Quynh Tho, and Quynh Lien communes of Quynh Luu district, Dien Kim, Dien Bich, and Dien Van (Dien Chau district), and Hung Hoa commune (Vinh city) are also being covered in green thanks to the well-developed mangrove planting program. This is the most practical result of the project "Planting mangroves - Reducing risks" implemented by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Nghe An. The whole province currently has 1,300 hectares of mangrove and casuarina forests cared for and protected by Red Cross volunteer teams.

In addition, the Red Cross is also a pioneer in training activities for disaster prevention and response. The provincial association has established community response teams in Nghi Quang and Nghi Tien communes of Nghi Loc district and Quynh Lien commune of Quynh Luu district with a total of 45 members. The teams are trained in basic contents such as responding to hazards and disasters related to climate change, first aid techniques in case of disasters, etc. Before, during and after each natural disaster, storm and flood, the Red Cross at all levels is always present in a timely manner and takes the lead in emergency relief activities and humanitarian assistance.

Donate blood to save lives

One of the top tasks of the Red Cross at all levels is to provide community-based health care for the people, especially the poor and those in difficult circumstances. As a bridge, the Provincial Red Cross has coordinated with medical corporations to issue hundreds of health insurance cards to the poor and students in especially difficult circumstances. Each year, it organizes medical examinations and provides medicine to about 3,000 people who are policy beneficiaries, the disabled, Agent Orange victims and those in especially difficult circumstances, worth hundreds of millions of VND. Activities such as free medicine distribution, health promotion communication for people, and vaccination campaigns are organized regularly by the Red Cross at all levels and are becoming increasingly effective.

The propaganda and mobilization of voluntary blood donation is one of the outstanding activities and has created a wide spread with humane and noble meaning. The annual blood donation festival has become a festival of noble gestures with the participation of thousands of cadres, workers, youth union members, students. The "Red Journey" program organized in the past 2 years has attracted tens of thousands of people to register for voluntary blood donation, becoming a highlight in the humanitarian activities of the Red Cross. The Association has established the "Thanh Vinh Live Blood Bank" Club, "For Nghe Tinh Blood Day", "Nghi Loc District Live Blood Bank", ... becoming a common home for volunteers who are willing to donate blood drops to save people. In the first 6 months of the year, the bank has propagated and mobilized 6 blood donations, collecting 600 units. In addition, Nghe An Red Cross also cooperated with the Provincial Blood Transfusion and Hematology Center to maintain and effectively organize 5 voluntary blood donation and platelet donation clubs with nearly 1,000 regular members operating effectively.

In addition to regular key activities, the Provincial Red Cross Society is always at the forefront of mobilization movements. In early 2014, the Society's leaders visited and presented gifts to officers, soldiers on duty and people in Truong Sa archipelago and DK1 platform complex; deployed the Campaign "Joining hands for the homeland's sea and islands" to all levels of the Provincial Red Cross Society...

It can be affirmed that, throughout the 35-year journey, with tireless activities, Nghe An Red Cross has truly become a red address, a place where people place their trust, worthy of being the leading flag in humanitarian movements.

Nguyen Khoa