The plight of an old mother raising two sick children

Ms. Ly shared: She and Mr. Bui Duc Hoi became husband and wife in 1963. Her husband was born in 1941, also a soldier, participating in the fiercest years of the war. However, because he lost many important documents, he was not able to enjoy any policies of the State. In 2003, he died of a serious illness.

Her husband passed away 15 years ago, leaving her to raise two children with Down syndrome alone. Photo: Thai Hien

Talking about her children, Mrs. Ly choked up and said: "It's very difficult, my life is full of pain. My husband and I have 6 children, 3 boys and 3 girls, when they were born, all of them were bright and healthy. But when they grew up, only 2 of them were normal, the other 3 had symptoms of Down syndrome, one daughter is also married but in the past 2 years she has developed mental illness."

Regarding her 3 children with Down syndrome, one of them passed away nearly 2 years ago. Now she has to raise 2 children, Mr. Bui Duc Tam, 51 years old, Ms. Bui Thi Hien, 47 years old. Although they are over 50 years old, they are still like children, their speech is still unclear, their faces are foolish, and they walk unsteadily.

Her children were not only slow but also often sick, so whenever she heard of a good doctor or medicine, she took her children to get treatment. From Western medicine to traditional medicine, but it was still the same, sick and weak all the time. As the years passed, hope gradually faded, she held back her tears and accepted. Now she just hoped she would have enough strength to take care of her children.

Every day, I have to work hard to go to the market to buy vegetables to cover my expenses. Photo: Thai Hien

Every day, all the heavy work in the house falls on the old mother's shoulders. The expenses of the three of them depend on 810 thousand VND in subsidies; she has to go to the market and sell each bunch of vegetables to cover the household expenses. Mrs. Ly sadly said: "I'm sick and I don't dare lie down. If I lie down, who will cook, do the laundry, and go to the market for the children? I'm only worried that when I lie down, who will my children rely on?"

Sharing about the situation of Mrs. Ly's family, Mr. Nguyen Van Dung, Head of Village 11, Phuc Son Commune, said: At this age, she should be resting, but she has to take care of two sick children for decades. Every day, she has to work hard to go to the market to buy vegetables to make ends meet. The local government also cares a lot about the family, every time the superiors have support policies or give gifts on holidays, the commune gives priority to her family, but it still cannot compensate. Through this, we hope that organizations and philanthropists will pay attention and help to reduce the difficulties of Mrs. Dang Thi Ly's family."

Please send any help to the Department of Publishing and Social Activities - Nghe An Newspaper, No. 3, Le Nin Avenue, Hung Phuc Ward - Vinh City - Nghe An. Contact phone: (023) 83.588138; (023) 88600006.

Or: Ms. Dang Thi Ly, village 11, Phuc Son commune, Anh Son district, Nghe An province. Phone: 0869.105.796

Thai Hien