Sympathy for the woman who lost her husband and child in Tan Ky district

It has been more than a month since her husband and child passed away, Ms. Hoang Thi Hoai's eyes are still swollen and dark with grief. Ms. Hoai talks about her family situation: In 2008, she married a man from the same hometown, Mr. Pham Van Thang. A year later, the couple happily welcomed their first daughter. The joy was multiplied when in 2010, Ms. Hoai and her husband gave birth to a second daughter. The family was poor and had no stable jobs, so every day the couple worked for hire to earn money to raise their children and send them to school. A small, peaceful family suddenly had a disaster: in 2012, the second child suddenly passed away due to an intestinal disease. Overcoming the mental pain, the couple decided to go to the South to work for a leather shoe company in Dong Nai province with the hope of escaping poverty.

Relatives and friends came to visit and encourage the family. Photo: Thu Huong

The family was short of people, so 5 years after the second child passed away, Hoai and her husband gave birth to a third son, Pham Bao An; in 2021, they gave birth to a fourth child, Pham Thi Bich Huyen. Although the family was poor, when they saw their children born safely and healthily, the couple encouraged each other to try to make up for it, not letting their children live a miserable life... But once again, disaster continued to strike the family. When the fourth child was 5 months old, Hoai and her husband saw that their child was showing unusual signs, his face was increasingly pale, his lips were purple, and he had difficulty breathing. The couple took Huyen to the doctor and the doctors concluded that he had congenital heart disease.

Not giving up hope, the couple left their 4-year-old third child with the grandparents to take care of Huyen to the National Children's Hospital, then to Ho Chi Minh City for treatment. The couple sold all the household items and valuables to raise money for their child's treatment. When there was nothing left to sell, the couple borrowed money from relatives and friends in the hope of saving their child. Despite their best efforts, Huyen's congenital heart disease was too complicated and she passed away.

Ms. Hoai's family situation is very difficult, so they have to make do with a temporary mattress placed on the floor. Photo: Thu Huong

Just one month after the fourth child passed away, Ms. Hoai's husband also suffered from headaches. According to Ms. Hoai, in the past, Mr. Thang only needed to take a few doses of medicine to get better from his headaches; even when he was busy with work, he tried to endure the pain to make it go away. But that day, he was in so much pain that she took him to the hospital for emergency treatment and discovered that he had meningitis. Only one week later, her husband passed away, leaving behind his wife and two young children.

“While he was still alive, he promised to renovate the kitchen when he had some money to protect it from the rain and wind, but before he could do so, he passed away,” Ms. Hoai recounted with a choked voice.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong, a resident of the neighborhood, said: “Since the day her husband and children passed away, Ms. Hoai has been sitting in the house, looking up at the portrait on the altar and covering her face, crying. Seeing this, everyone sympathizes with her and often comes to encourage the family.” Currently, Ms. Hoai’s eldest granddaughter is in 8th grade, and her third granddaughter is in 5th grade kindergarten.

The house of Ms. Hoang Thi Hoai's family in Tan Xuan commune, Tan Ky district. Photo: Thu Huong

Mr. Phan Vu Hung - Chairman of Tan Xuan Commune People's Committee said: Ms. Hoang Thi Hoai's family is a poor household in the commune. Faced with the heartbreaking situation of the family, the Party Committee, People's Committee and mass organizations of the commune and village promptly paid attention and visited. At the same time, they launched a campaign to support the family through the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee and the Women's Union of the commune, first of all, to help repair the house. Through this situation, the locality hopes to receive the attention and help of organizations and individuals with good hearts so that Ms. Hoai's family can soon stabilize their spirit and improve their lives; and Bao An and her two sisters can have the opportunity to go to school.