Spreading Smiles: Three Heartwarming Stories to Warm Up November
Discover the story of a young teacher who filled a 'hungry bookshelf', taught English to people over 80, and the 16-year journey of this determined teacher in awarding scholarships.
The journey to fill the 'hungry bookshelves' for children in mountainous regions.
With the dream of helping students in mountainous areas gain literacy, young teacher Le Minh Ngoc has dedicated eight years to sowing the seeds of knowledge. Her journey has resulted in the establishment of over 2,000 libraries in mountain schools, bringing books closer to children.
In March 2023, the "Children's Book Shelf" project, led by Minh Ngoc, was officially launched with the goal of igniting a passion for reading in children. She shared a memorable moment: “When the children in Ha Giang held the books in their hands, their eyes lit up with joy and appreciation. At that moment, I knew they deserved to receive these books as gifts.”
The students' affection was expressed through thoughtful gifts. At Thai Giang Pho Primary School (Lao Cai), the students created a special wall newspaper to thank Ms. Ngoc. Tuyet Mai shared: "Thanks to books, my friends and I have gained more knowledge and many interesting stories to read."
A special English class for students aged 60-80.
In the heart of Hanoi, teacher Phung Thi Hai Yen has maintained a special free English class for the past 7 years. Her "students" are elderly men and women aged 60 to 84, who find joy and connection there.
The students' supplies to class were also quite unusual: instead of books, they brought medicine, reading glasses, or a cup of hot tea. Ms. Hai Yen recounted that despite the weather or their poor health, the elderly students still came to class regularly with gentle smiles and a simple English greeting: "Today I'm happy!"
For many senior citizens, the class is not just a place to learn a language, but also a peaceful haven to rediscover the joy of living. Ms. Lan, the class leader, shared: "Going to class with Ms. Yen makes me happier every day."
The resilience of the one-legged teacher and 16 years of sowing hope.
An accident in 2008 took away one of teacher Nguyen Thi Minh Tam's legs, but it couldn't extinguish her passion for teaching and her compassion. It was the love and support of her students that became the immense strength that helped her return to the classroom and begin a new journey.
In 2015, Ms. Tam founded the Nhat Tam volunteer group to help disadvantaged people and support poor students. Over the years, hundreds of scholarships have been awarded, helping many dreams remain unfulfilled.
The "seeds of kindness" she sowed have blossomed and continue to spread love. Duc Huy, a former scholarship recipient, has now returned to join her in helping other children. He shared: "I still clearly remember the moment I received the scholarship under the flag. At that time, I felt very happy and proud, because it gave me more motivation to try harder."
These inspiring stories will be featured in the program "Acts of Kindness in November: Sowing Smiles," airing at 8:10 PM on November 8th on VTV1 and the VTVgo app.