Strengthening Domestic Capabilities, Expanding Growth Opportunities for Vietnamese Businesses

A Woman with Cerebral Palsy Turns Her Job Search into a Journey of Creating Opportunities

Others have begun thinking about careers and their futures. Behind these changes are the families, communities, organizations and businesses that chose to stay long enough to accompany them through difficult years.

The “Walking Through Life with Children” program was launched by Thanh Nien newspaper during the COVID-19 pandemic to support children who lost their parents to the disease. What began as an emergency support initiative gradually developed into a long-term commitment, aimed at giving the children better opportunities to study, grow and confidently step into the future.

Five years later, what remains is not simply the number of children supported or the gifts delivered. It is also the story of children who have grown up surrounded by the care of their communities; families that have worked hard to overcome tragedy; and people who chose to stay and accompany the children long enough to watch them grow, day by day.

There are babies who lost their mothers to COVID-19 before they were even a year old.

Tan Hiep Phat is one of the businesses that joined “Walking Through Life with Children” from the beginning, taking a long-term approach by sponsoring 50 children until they reach the age of 18, rather than providing support only at a particular moment or for a short period. Some of these children were born in 2021 and lost their mothers before they were even one year old.

Behind that commitment is a shared sense of empathy between Tan Hiep Phat’s founder and the Editor-in-Chief of Thanh Nien newspaper, both of whom experienced losing a parent during childhood. Their similar life experiences created a special connection and helped both sides better understand the children who had to grow up after an overwhelming loss.

At the same time, their shared view of social responsibility — that it should not simply mean offering help when difficulties arise, but remaining committed long enough to create lasting change — brought Tan Hiep Phat to the “Walking Through Life with Children” program.

Journalist Nguyen Ngoc Toan, Editor-in-Chief of Thanh Nien, once said that everyone at the newspaper, from the editor-in-chief to individual staff members, regarded helping orphaned children as “the responsibility and duty of journalists,” with the belief that society and the community would not abandon them.

For Tan Hiep Phat, caring for children and contributing to the community are also part of the company’s commitment to social responsibility. The company hopes to provide a source of support for children who need to regain their faith in life during difficult and uncertain times, while spreading resilience and strength to families so that the children can grow into mature and responsible members of society.

For that reason, the company’s involvement in the program has gone beyond financial support. It has expanded into regular personal engagement by its employees, many of whom have voluntarily become mentors and familiar companions to the children.

Children Gradually Filling the Void and Growing Up Surrounded by Love

Amid the sudden sunshine and rain of Saigon in September, vehicles carrying Tan Hiep Phat employees — familiar companions of the program — once again made their way through the city streets, from Thu Duc, Binh Thanh, District 3, District 6, District 8 and District 12 to Binh Tan and Binh Chanh, visiting the homes of nearly 50 children and delivering gifts for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The three siblings—Thao, Xuan, and Hieu—gradually grew up in the care of their grandparents, learning to manage their own studies and help out the family.

These journeys have become familiar to both the company’s employees and the children, alongside visits during the Lunar New Year and International Children’s Day on June 1.

At the home of Hang Huu Nghia and Phung Tu Lan in Binh Phu Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, siblings Hang Ngoc Thao, Hang Ngoc Xuan and Hang Quoc Hieu have long been familiar with Mr. Toan, Mr. Nam, Ms. Thanh and other members of the Tan Hiep Phat team.

Their mother, Hang Ngoc Bich, died of COVID-19 in 2021, while their father had left the family long before. After that loss, their maternal grandparents became the three children’s main support.

Although elderly, Mr. Nghia still works as a ride-hailing motorbike driver, while Ms. Lan stays home to care for the children. Life remains difficult and financially challenging, but the grandparents continue to do everything they can for their grandchildren, with support from Thanh Nien and Tan Hiep Phat through the “Walking Through Life with Children” program.

Five years after their mother’s death, Thao, Xuan and Hieu have gradually grown up and learned to take responsibility for their studies and help their family.

Thao is now in ninth grade, Xuan is in fourth grade and Hieu is in third grade. They have grown through small, everyday acts: waking themselves up for school in the morning, taking out their homework in the afternoon, washing dishes, serving themselves meals and helping their grandparents with household chores.

Knowing how hard their grandparents work, the children have become responsible at an early age.

“Whenever they get home, they take out their books and finish their homework. Basically, they study on their own,” Mr. Nghia said.

He still works as a ride-hailing driver, while Ms. Lan continues to look after their small drinks stall beside the rented house.

Raising four children on her own, Ms. Sa Ren is constantly worried, as the costs of education and daily living rise along with her children's growth.

“Well, as long as we still have the strength, we’ll keep working to take care of the children. We’ll think about what to do when we’re no longer able to,” Mr. Nghia said.

Inside that small home, the children are also learning how to make their own way in life. Hieu likes mathematics. Xuan is diligent at school, helps her grandparents with their drinks business and dreams of becoming an English teacher one day.

When the adults asked what she wanted to say, Xuan was initially shy. Then she quietly said: “Thank you for coming to visit me so often.”

At her home in Phu Dinh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, Kim Thi Sa Ren is also raising four children after losing her husband to COVID-19.

At the time, her eldest son, Kim Bao, was only eight years old. His three younger brothers, triplets born in 2017, were still very young, while Sa Ren’s mother-in-law had also died. She suddenly found herself solely responsible for raising four children.

Sa Ren cannot read or write. She has had to take home-based piecework, help prepare free porridge and do manual labor to earn extra income. With her four children attending school at different times, finding a stable job has been even more difficult. She has constantly worried that as the children grow older, their education and living expenses will continue to increase.

In October 2022, Tan Hiep Phat began supporting all four children through the age of 18.

Five years after the loss, the small family home still has many expenses to deal with. But the children have also grown.

Kim Bao has become calmer and more mature. He knows how to listen and help his mother take care of his younger brothers. Asked whether living with three younger brothers is tiring, his answer comes immediately and honestly:

“Very tiring!”

Kim Bao, Thien Bao, Quoc Bao and Gia Bao each have their own personalities, but all four are healthy, lively and deeply attached to one another.

Sa Ren, who has had to play both father and mother, continues to worry as her children move into higher grades and education costs rise while her income remains unstable.

“I’m afraid that when the children get into higher grades, I won’t have enough to take care of them. Fortunately, the people from Thanh Nien and Tan Hiep Phat have been there for us,” she said emotionally.

Whenever the children hear that their mentors are coming to visit, both they and their mother eagerly look forward to the visits.

Trần Phương Hy, from Binh Dong Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, is also on her own journey toward adulthood.

Five years ago, Hy lost her mother when she was in sixth grade. She lived with her paternal grandparents while her father worked far from home.

At the time, her grandparents had a simple wish: that their granddaughter would behave well, study hard and eventually be able to stand on her own feet.

Five years later, that wish is gradually becoming reality.

Hy is now an 11th-grade student. She enjoys drawing, is interested in French and English, and has begun thinking about which university entrance examination group she will choose.

“I like French because it has many interesting features in grammar and pronunciation. After being exposed to English more, I realized that every language has its own interesting aspects,” Hy said.

Phuong Hy is no longer shy around people who were once strangers to her. Four years of companionship have gradually turned strangers into family friends.

Phuong Hy is no longer shy around people who were once strangers. Five years of journeying together have transformed these encounters into a bond of kinship.

Hy’s grandfather simply hopes that she will grow up and eventually find a job that allows her to support herself.

“As for how far she can go in the future, or whether she will be good at what she does, that depends on her,” he said.

Giving Love Today So the Circle of Sharing Can Continue

For Tan Hiep Phat employees, each visit to the children feels like returning to see familiar relatives. They remember each child’s name, know which subjects they like, which ones are preparing for exams and which have recently achieved something new.

Some employees remain in contact with the families after their visits and even take the children out with their own children during holidays and the Lunar New Year.

The clearest change is not simply that the children have grown older. It is that the distance between people who were once strangers has gradually disappeared.

Questions such as “Did you enjoy going to school this term?” or “Do you have any new achievements to tell us about?” have become natural conversations between people who have grown close over the years.

The people who accompany the children also receive something meaningful in return. It may be the joy of seeing a child proudly show a good grade, the emotion of watching a once-shy girl now confidently start a conversation, or simply the feeling of being welcomed every time they return.

The road ahead for these children is still long. Five years on, they have begun to study independently, help their grandparents and think about their futures.

Phuong Hy is thinking even further ahead. If she eventually finds a stable job, she wants to help children who face circumstances similar to her own.

A child who once received help during the most difficult period of her life may one day grow up enough to reach out her hand to someone else.

“I think my mother, looking down from above, can feel somewhat reassured about my life now. I can choose my own future, and I have grown more mature every day,” Hy said.

Five years ago, she was a little girl who had lost her mother. Five years later, she is an 11th-grade student who thinks about the future, knows how to choose her own path and understands that one day she, too, wants to become a source of support for someone else.

Five years have passed, and the love given through “Walking Through Life with Children” has formed an ever-expanding circle — from those who accompany the children, to the children themselves, and from the children to the values of kindness and compassion that they will one day continue to give back to life.