The will to succeed of a student from Nghe An who was orphaned twice

disadvantaged past

In the recent high school graduation exam, Nguyen Van Hieu (born in 2004) was a student.get the highest scoreof Herman Germainer High School in both block C00 (total score is 27.5) and D (total score is 26.95). As an exemplary student, actively participating in movements and always maintaining excellent academic performance, Hieu was admitted to the Party while still in school. At the same time, he is also known by many people as the Chairman of the Youth Self-Management Council - Youth Hostel, SOS Children's Village Vinh. But few people know the story behind that record, what Hieu has experienced over the past 18 years.

Little boy Nguyen Van Hieu in his first days at SOS Children's Village Vinh. Photo: CSCC

Hieu was accepted into SOS Children's Village Vinh at the age of 4, when his mother had just passed away, leaving only his elderly grandmother in his family. Looking at the cute boy from Do Luong with clear eyes, bewildered in his new home, everyone felt heartbroken.

Staying in the Village, Hieu was compensated by the love of his mother, uncles, aunts, and brothers, living in large families with brothers and sisters who were united and cared for each other. A little older, he became aware of himself, the disadvantages of being an orphan that fate had arranged for him and his brothers and sisters in the Village. Hieu also understood that he had a wonderful foster mother, who although she did not give birth to him, cared for him every little thing, listened to his whispers, and always praised and encouraged him for his small achievements... Hieu loved his mother very much, always wanted to be a good child, study well to make his mother happy.

I thought life would compensate Hieu with a complete and happy family, but no, in 7th grade, Hieu was shocked when he once again had to experience the pain of losing his second beloved mother. This time, the boy Hieu felt all the pain of losing his mother and he began to tend to be more introverted.

“Fate let my mother come into my life, become my mother, the most important person and my greatest spiritual support. Then fate took her away. I kept thinking, why did I have to go through this loss twice. That question made me depressed for a long time” - Hieu recalled.

Hieu (bottom row, second from left) with his uncles, aunts and friends at SOS Children's Village Vinh. Photo: CSCC

The third mother as well as the uncles inSOS Children's Village Vinhalways by Hieu's side, helping him through those saddest days. Taking turns naming the most important people in his life, Hieu reserved for those non-blood relatives a love and gratitude greater than anything. He confided: "Mother Hien is the one who directly encouraged and healed my emotions, Uncle Luong - the Village Director always cared, trusted, and created the best conditions for me to study, Uncle Thanh, Uncle Hoa and the uncles at the Youth Dormitory are the ones who helped me grow up and become more stable in life... I understand that I need to strive to be worthy of the unconditional love that I am receiving from my mothers, uncles, and uncles."

In 2019, when he entered 10th grade, Hieu said goodbye to his mother Hien and his siblings to start his life at the Youth Hostel. With a lot of loss and love, Hieu affirmed himself through important milestones.

Worthy of love

“I knew about Hieu’s special circumstances before and welcomed him to the Youth Men’s Shelter with the hope that his upcoming journey would be filled with joy, happiness, and love to make up for his shortcomings,” said Pham Ngoc Hoa, in charge of the Youth Men’s Shelter at SOS Children’s Village Vinh. He still clearly remembers Hieu’s shy and self-conscious eyes in the first days of starting his new life. Already quiet, Hieu became even quieter in the new environment, sadness seemed to always be present on the thin shoulders of the young man.

With his academic achievements and contributions to movements, Nguyen Van Hieu was admitted to the Party while still in school. Photo: CSCC

“When I first came to Luu Xa, I missed my mother and my family members so much, I was always depressed. Everyone did not let me suffer alone and encouraged me a lot. I still remember my uncles and aunts telling me to accept this change as a turning point, to be confident and learn as much as possible, so that after 3 years of high school, I would transform and become the best version of myself. Those things really awakened and inspired me,” Hieu recalled.

After a period of observation, recognizing Hieu’s exemplary behavior, intelligence and “leadership” ability, the men in the dormitory guided Hieu to take on the role of Vice President of the Youth Self-Management Council. From this role, Hieu observed and learned many skills from his brothers and sisters, perfecting his organizational, management, communication skills… and gradually regained his self-confidence. Just one year later, Hieu was trusted with the role of President, replacing his brothers to skillfully manage more than 40 young men in the dormitory, operating the association’s activities smoothly.

Hieu shared: “To take on this role, I have to be disciplined and exemplary, but I also need to be sociable, know how to listen and share. In addition, understanding the psychology of the members and knowing how to persuade people also helps the management become more convenient. What I did not expect was that this role made me realize that I was really interested in and capable of the field of human resource management. This was a big turning point in my life.”

Hieu is considered a hard-working, intelligent student who always tries his best to achieve his goals. Photo: NVCC

Seeing the path he wanted to take, Hieu knew what he needed to do. In grade 11, he decided to switch to block D instead of block A and focused on learning English to make up for the knowledge he had lost before. Hieu's journey to conquer his dream university began with a lot of support from those around him. The uncles and aunts in the village agreed to give Hieu an old computer to conveniently study English online, and provided tuition for Hieu to attend some suitable exam preparation classes. To have the highest concentration, Hieu was very strict with himself, even during the months leading up to the exam, he did not use his cell phone.

Hieu shared: “Not only me, all the friends in the Village are guided in their careers and supported wholeheartedly by the uncles and aunts.Grade 12 studentsare all exempted from labor activities, often participate in healthy recreational activities to relax, the management office always has printers and ink ready to serve the candidates to practice the exam, in addition to the daily meals, we also have a late night meal to review for the exam, although the weather is not too hot to turn on the air conditioner, the university entrance exam review group is always prioritized by the uncles... Not only that, the teachers at Hermann Gmeiner Vinh school also organize free review for us, the students volunteer to teach via zoom or come to teach directly to each group. During the study process, if any of you are sick, the uncles will take care of you like a child with porridge, milk... With what I have received from everyone, I feel extremely happy and lucky".

Nguyen Van Hieu (far left) with his teacher and friends at the high school graduation ceremony. Photo: NVCC

These days, I am preparing for the journey to become a student of the Faculty of Human Resource Management of the University of Commerce (Hanoi) and eagerly preparing for the next journey on the path to pursue my dream. “Although I have not yet enrolled, I know for sure that my upcoming student journey will continue to be a journey filled with love, from the brothers and sisters who grew up in the Village, who lived together in the same house… Maybe fate did not give me a normal happiness, but it has compensated me with another special happiness. I will live to be worthy of the love I have received” - Hieu confided. I believe, he will do more than that.