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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE November 28, 2006
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| November 11, 2006 |
Da Nang, Viet Nam – Vietnamese Street Children Turning Into Upbeat Children |
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| A Peace Boat participant shares a smile with a former street child |
Long after the Vietnam War ended, children's lives remained deeply affected by it. Thousands of children - some as young as 3 years old - ended up living on the streets because the war had destroyed much of the country's social and economic networks, provoking decades of poverty. On November 9, Peace Boat organized a study program to the Da Nang Street Children Program to see how people have been making the lives of children whole again. |
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| Peace Boat delivers a dozen bags of stationary to the program |
The director of the program explained how support from NGOs in various countries has helped to provide food, clothing, homes, and classrooms to street children for the past 15 years. The program has been such a success, he said, that no more children live on the streets of the city. It teaches young people new skills, helps all of them become independent and find jobs when they turn 18, and gives scholarships to those wanting to go on to university. |
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| An embroidery student greets the participants |
Peace Boat participants had a chance to visit the classrooms where young people were busy learning computing, sewing, mechanics, and embroidery. “Wow, how beautiful!” many participants exclaimed, upon seeing the colorful and intricate embroidery designs the students were making. Only the scarred hands and feet belied the past of one student, who smiled radiantly when her work was praised. |
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| A boy learns origami from one of the participants |
Participants also visited one of the five residential homes of the children. Each home holds 30 children, all of whom become family to one another. The house mothers warmly welcomed participants with a delicious, home-cooked Vietnamese lunch, and the children showed off their home's library, bedrooms, kitchen, and play area. Afterward, participants played basketball and learned Vietnamese games from the young people in the home. The youngest boy in the home took a great interest in the origami decorations one participant had brought, and eagerly learned how to make them. “He's amazing!” the participant said. “I only had to show him the steps once, and he remembered them all!” |
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| Boys in one home have become friends and brothers to one another |
After spending the day with the bright and talented young people, it was hard to believe that many had once survived by collecting trash, peddling cheap wares, and begging. The tour helped people realize that the potential of many street children around the world remains untapped because programs like the one in Da Nang don't exist for them yet. Participants also keenly felt how war can tear apart a society, but the caring and cooperation of people around the world can help put it back together again. |
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| The entrance to one of the five homes for the children |
The Danang Street Children Program can be reached at scpdn[at]dng.vnn.vn, or at 312 Phan Chau Trinh-Da Nang, Viet Nam. |
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