Mother nearly 80 years old raising 4 mentally ill children

(Baonghean) - In 1953, Ms. Hoang Thi Ngo (born in 1936) married Mr. Le Van Hanh. In 1954, Mr. Hanh joined the army and fought in the Binh - Tri - Thien battlefield. 10 years later, he was demobilized and returned to his hometown. Following the government's encouragement, he and his wife migrated from Nam Dan to Hamlet 2, Binh Son Commune, Anh Son to build a new economic zone. Seven children were born one after another, but although they grew up, they were not smart. Out of the seven children, four were absent-minded, did not know what to do, and often broke things and screamed. The remaining three were better, could work on their own, and had families.

In 1996, Mr. Hanh passed away, leaving Mrs. Ngo with the burden of 4 children infected with the toxic chemical dioxin: Le Thi Thuy (born in 1964), Le Van Thu (born in 1966), Le Van Phong (born in 1968), Le Van Sy (born in 1970) and a dilapidated house. Thanks to the care and help of the local government and neighbors, in 1998, the tiled house was completed, providing shelter from the rain and sun for the mother and 5 children. In good weather, the children can help her with some chores such as cooking rice, herding cows in the fields... However, when the weather changes, disaster can strike at any time. Once, while groping in the fields, Mrs. Ngo was called home by a neighbor, when she arrived home, the kitchen was on fire, luckily the neighbor knew and came over to help put out the fire. It turned out that while cooking rice, her child "got angry" and lit the thatched roof, leading to a fire. While herding cows, her younger son used a stick to chase the cows away, and she had to ask someone to go find him. Many days, after a tiring day of work, she had to look for her lost son with a light…

Her children are sick, sometimes unconscious, sometimes awake, and she is old and weak, but she still has to go around the fields and the beach to find more vegetables and shrimp for her children to have a full meal. Many days when she has headaches and weak knees due to old age, she has to leave it to fate, saving up for 3 allowances for Agent Orange victims and 1 allowance for the disabled. What she worries about most is, when she passes away, who will take care of her children? The house that the local government and neighbors have helped build for nearly 20 years is deteriorating, the walls are cracked, the tiled roof is old and worn out, and it is not known when it will collapse.

Mr. Le Van Ngoc, the Party Secretary of the commune, expressed his concern: Her four children are healthy, but not intelligent, and cannot help their old mother. The commune knows about Mrs. Ngo's family's situation, so it has created the best conditions, but the commune is a remote and poor area, so it cannot provide her with a charity house. I hope that kind-hearted people will help her to have a house that is secure and durable, so that when she returns to her ancestors, she can rest in peace..."

Ha Linh