Joy from “Red Cross” houses

The Provincial Red Cross Society supported Ms. Bui Thi Hong's family in Dinh Son commune (Cam Giang) to build a "Red Cross" house.

One of the activities that achieved positive results was the coordination to support the construction of Red Cross houses (CTĐ) for households in difficult circumstances.

Construction began in early October, and the "CTĐ" house of Ms. Nguyen Thi Chat (over 80 years old, in O Me village, Hung Dao commune, Tu Ky) was completed at the end of November with a total cost of nearly 120 million VND. The Provincial Red Cross Association supported 50 million VND. Through the connection of the Provincial Red Cross Association, a charity organization donated 11 million VND to Ms. Chat. The rest was helped by relatives and friends. Ms. Chat has no husband or children, and has had to live alone in a seriously degraded house for many years. The new house is about 30 square meters wide, has a private bathroom, a cold-rolled corrugated iron roof, and a concrete yard about 20 square meters wide.

Thanks to the initial budget of 50 million VND supported by the Red Cross Society, many brothers and relatives donated an additional 40 million VND, and organizations in the village supported labor days to build a "CTĐ" house for Ms. Bui Thi Hong (born in 1979, in An Diem A village, Dinh Son commune, Cam Giang). Ms. Hong's family is poor, she herself is disabled, and is a single mother raising a small child. Previously, she and her child lived in a level 4 house that had been seriously degraded for many years. The house was started in July and completed in October, 45 square meters wide, paved with marble, with a sidewalk and a spacious yard with a total cost of about 200 million VND. Ms. Hong said: "Thanks to the attention of the provincial Red Cross Society and charitable organizations and individuals, my child and I are now able to live in a solid house, giving us more motivation to live better."

For nearly half a year now, the breakfast noodle and rice paper shop of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's family (born in 1978) in Quang Trung ward (Hai Duong city) has been increasingly crowded with customers. Ms. Thuy's husband passed away due to a serious illness, she lives with her two sons and two grandchildren of her first son because her daughter-in-law left home. Ms. Thuy has heart disease, arthritis and some other diseases, so her health is poor. Her two children are freelance workers, for many months now they have had work sometimes and sometimes not due to the impact of the epidemic. In June this year, Ms. Thuy's house was completed with a budget of more than 200 million VND, of which the Provincial Red Cross Association supported 50 million VND, the Hai Duong City Red Cross Association 10 million VND, the rest she had to borrow. Ms. Thuy emotionally said: "Before, I had to work for hire at a facility selling dumplings and fried dough sticks, but now I have a new house, a place to sell breakfast food. The support from the association at all levels not only helps my family have a place to live but also opens up a new livelihood suitable for my health. Thanks to that, my family's situation has become less difficult."

During the past term, the province had 307 households supported to build "CTĐ" houses, 27 households to repair their houses with a total amount of nearly 23.5 billion VND, the highest ever. Many units and enterprises have been enthusiastically working and attached to humanitarian work in the province for many years, such as the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, Hai Duong branch, joint stock companies: Pha Lai Thermal Power, Hai Duong Clean Water Business, An Phat Holdings Group, Hoa Phat Steel... In May this year, from the funds mobilized during the "Humanitarian Month", the Provincial Red Cross Association supported the construction of 17 "CTĐ" houses in the province, each household with 50 million VND.

The representative of the provincial Red Cross Association said that the construction of more and more "Red Cross" houses not only helps people have a place to live, but also shows the spirit of mutual love of the whole community for the less fortunate in life. This is a great source of encouragement for them to overcome difficulties and strive to build a more prosperous and fulfilling life; at the same time, contributing to the locality to ensure social security.

VIET QUYNH