Family near Hanoi being supported by 100 Friends. 100 Friends supports 36 families in partnership with HSCV.

Family near Hanoi being supported by 100 Friends.

Location The family lives in Khanh Thuong commune of Ba Vi, a rural district to the northwest of Hanoi. Originally part of Ha Tay Province, Ba Vi was incorporated by Hanoi in 2008. On the edge of Vietnam’s northern mountainous region, Ba Vi is a blend of 50% mountains and 50% lowlands. Khanh Thuong commune is located in the lower mountainous region. Relatively poor soil quality and erosion issues due to the hilly topography make farming difficult, furthermore many families have to travel several kilometers each day to tend to their crops. Rats are problematic and destroy a high percentage of the crops each year. There is little opportunity for alternative income sources in the area. Due to the remoteness of the area, children have to travel up to 10 km, (6 miles), to attend school. Sponsorship Information Thank you so much for keep helping Duy with scholarship for the last 4 years. Your suport is a great encouragment for the boy and for his family. They are really grateful for your help! Background The parents are both farmers. Their small rice-field can provide food for only one season. To get more food, they grow corn and potatoes. The family of four live in a very small house which is just around 20 m2. It was built in 2006. The furniture inside the house is very old. Sometimes when work is available, the father works at construction sites for extra income. This hard construction work helped him earn $50 per month, but it is also very sporadic – not every month. However, he cannot work too hard since he has problem with the back. Although their life is very hard, the parents are happy with the two young sons. But they are concerned a lot about the school expenses every year when the new school year starts. Updated Information There is no significant chnage in the family situation for the last year. The family is still living in that very old and small house. There are many cracks on the roof that cannot keep the house dry in rainy season. The parents really want to change the roof but right now they cannot afford it yet. The father has herniated disc that makes his back painful and he cannot work. Most of the time he just stays at home and helps his wife taking care of the children. The mother, thus is the breadwinner of the family. Her work is mainly farming. She is also hired to peel off the bark for the carpenter workshop. She earns around 1 million dong per month (approx. $43 USD). The cow that the family bought from the HSCV’s loan produced a calf last year. They sold it for 6 million dong (approx. 260 USD). The burden of the family of 4 is still very heavy on the mother’s shoulders. Sponsorship Availability and History The family was introduced to HSCV since 2012. Manh has received scholarship from HSCV since 2014. Duy has received since 2015. He was also donated with a new bicycle early 2015. You also supported them to buy pomelo trees in 2015. In 2016, the family received a loan from HSCV to buy a cow to the rear and a donation to build a cowshed. If you have any questions or comments, please email our Sponsorship Team at sponsorships@hscv.org

The mother and sons in front of the house Duy

Family Members Name Y.O.B Sex Occupation Gia (father) 1970 M Farmer Hang ( mother) 1980 F Farmer Manh (son) 2007 M Student Grade 5 Duy (son) 2009 M Student Grade 4 Inside the house Manh The mother with the cow and calf