Reportage

'Being at the station with dad is more fun than being at home!'

Khanh Ly-Thanh Phuc • May 2, 2025 14:44

That is the innocent sharing of two boys Vi Duong Cam (born 2011), Thai ethnic group and Vu Ba Lau (born 2013), Mong ethnic group - adopted children of the Border Guard Station stationed in the border commune of Na Ngoi, the remote district of Ky Son - where there are villages scattered at the foot of the Puxailaileng mountain range covered in clouds all year round.

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Visiting Na Ngoi Border Guard Station, we were attracted by the image of two boys, one tall, one thin, huddled together, laughing and talking happily, taking care of a bird in a pretty bamboo cage. When asked, both answered in unison: We are the adopted children of the border guards!

Through the conversation with the officers of Na Ngoi Border Guard Station, we learned that although they were from different ethnic groups with different customs and practices, and had never met before, since becoming adopted children of the Station, eating at the same table, sleeping in the same room, Vi Duong Cam and Vu Ba Lau became as close as brothers, going everywhere together.

Both of them had extremely difficult circumstances so they were adopted by Na Ngoi Border Guard Station, living and working with the soldiers in the unit.

Vi Duong Cam is the youngest child of a Thai ethnic family in Tang Phan village with 6 children. His parents do not have stable jobs and are often sick, so life is very difficult.

Understanding the young student's situation, he was adopted by the Border Guard Station in 2020 and is currently studying in grade 8C at Na Ngoi Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities.

As for the Mong ethnic boy Vu Ba Lau in Phu Kha 1 village, his father died when he was young. His mother, Lau, had to rely on farming alone to raise four children, so Lau's path to school was in danger of being unfinished.

Therefore, when the Na Ngoi Border Guard Station officers, along with teachers and officers from the commune and village, came to his house to learn about and announce the adoption policy, Lau's family and himself were very happy and moved. Since the beginning of 2024, Lau has officially been taken in by the Na Ngoi Border Guard Station to be cared for and educated. He is currently studying in grade 6C, Na Ngoi Ethnic Boarding Secondary School.

Every day, in addition to being cared for and looked after in every meal and sleep, Lau and Cam also participate in activities with the Border Guard officers and soldiers such as planting vegetables, taking care of ornamental plants in the station's grounds, playing sports to exercise, improve physical strength... At the beginning of the new school year or holidays, New Year, International Children's Day June 1, Mid-Autumn Festival... the fathers and uncles of the Border Guard at the Station all buy gifts, shoes, new clothes, and school supplies for their children and grandchildren.

Major Gia Ba Na (born 1979), Captain of the Mass Mobilization Team of Na Ngoi Border Guard Station, said: When they first arrived, the children were shy, had little communication, did not know how to practice personal hygiene, and were not used to the disciplined lifestyle and rhythm of life in the military environment.

However, thanks to the care, closeness and gentleness of generations of officers and soldiers in the Station, the children have gradually gotten used to and consider the Border Guard Station as their second home.

The most difficult thing is to create harmony and attachment between a Mong boy and a Thai boy of different ages.

At first, the children were shy, did not communicate much, and were not open with each other, but thanks to the border guards connecting, communicating, and guiding them to participate in common activities, Cam and Lau considered each other as brothers, advising each other to progress together.

The children became more agile, active, and confident, and all called the border guards in the mass mobilization team who had been with them and taken care of them since the early days, such as Major Pham Xuan Minh from Yen Thanh district; Major Gia Ba Na from Dooc May commune (Ky Son) "Dad" in a friendly and affectionate way.

Sharing with us (PV), Vi Duong Cam boasted: “Being at the station with my dad is more fun than being at home. Now I know how to fold clothes, fold blankets neatly, grow vegetables, water vegetables, wrap banh chung, play volleyball and pickleball too…”.

Nurturing Hope

In addition to caring for and nurturing, officers and soldiers of Na Ngoi Border Guard Station pay special attention to the education of adopted border guards' children; at the same time, they provide both material and spiritual support so that the children have the opportunity to continue going to school.

The children's study corners are neatly arranged by their fathers. During the day, the children go to school, and at night, by the small lamp, the fathers in green uniforms carefully explain each math lesson and correct each handwriting for their adopted children.

“Tutoring children in their studies requires patience, because the children lack basic knowledge, so it must be supplemented gradually. In addition, the Station also regularly connects with homeroom teachers and the school's Board of Directors to grasp the children's learning and training situation.

Currently, the Station has two young students from the Border Guard College who are interns to join and guide Cam and Lau in their studies and activities. In addition, the Station also regularly connects with the adopted children's families to inform them of the situation and encourage them to study and practice with peace of mind. Occasionally, the border guards will take the children to visit their families and relatives and then pick them up again at the Station. Since the children arrived, the Mass Mobilization Team has been a little busier but very warm" - Major Gia Ba Na said.

Thanks to the guidance and education of their foster fathers, Vi Duong Cam and Vu Ba Lau's studies have made remarkable progress. Both share the dream of "becoming soldiers in green uniforms, contributing to protecting the village like their uncles and fathers".

Major Nguyen Dinh Trung - Deputy Political Commissar of Na Ngoi Border Guard Station said: The children will be raised at the unit until they finish grade 9. After that, if they continue to study in high school, the unit will sponsor them under the program "Helping children go to school"; children who wish to learn a trade or go to university or college will also be supported in the same way. The funding for raising the children will be taken from the fund and salary contributions of officers and soldiers of the unit.

Before Cam and Lau, Na Ngoi Border Guard Station adopted Mua Ba Sau (born 2008), a Mong ethnic living in Phu Kha 2 village, Na Ngoi commune. Sau has a rather special situation, his father died early, his mother remarried a man in Laos.

Sau went to live with his grandparents, however, they were old and weak, so life was difficult and deprived. After being adopted and cared for by the Na Ngoi Border Guard Station, Sau finished secondary school and is currently studying both culture and vocational training in Quang Binh. Every month, the Border Guard Station still supports him under the "Step Up to School" program.

Currently, in addition to the two adopted children being raised and cared for at the unit, Vi Duong Cam and Vu Ba Lau, Na Ngoi Border Guard Station is sponsoring four students in difficult circumstances under the "Step Up to School" program with a support level of 500,000 VND/child/month. Among them, one Laotian child is Mai Ly Za, an 8th grade student, residing in Nam Ngach village, Muong Moc district, Xieng Khouang province.

According to Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan - Secretary of the Party Committee of Na Ngoi Commune: The model of "Adopted Border Guard Children" and "Helping Children Go to School" that Na Ngoi Border Guard Station has been implementing is a program with profound humanistic meaning; contributing to accompanying and sharing difficulties with local Party Committees, authorities, schools and ethnic minority households in the border area. Under the guidance and support of fathers in green uniforms, tomorrow, the children will become useful citizens for society.

Looking at the young boys who are adopted children of border guards happily taking care of the vegetable garden, playing sports or playing with their adoptive fathers and brothers in the spacious yard of the border guard station with synchronized facilities, we feel the simple happiness, full of humanity at the border.

Believing that, with the warm hearts and strong shoulders of their Border Guard fathers as a support, boys born in the misty villages with less fortunate circumstances like Vi Duong Cam, Vu Ba Lau... will have the opportunity to build their dreams; and when they grow up, they will become the core "nucleus" in the movement of the entire people participating in protecting the territorial sovereignty and border security at the Fatherland's borders.