Safe home and pure water to drink!

   Todays note is written by Van Nguyen. She has stepped up and handles our administration. My trust and reliance has continued to grow. I know that if I need something done, she's the one! I want to thank donors who transform families with a safe home.  A special thanks to ATTA for the water filters, families can now have safe water to drink!!! Please enjoy Van's note and if led write a word of encouragement and I will forward it. (please note Journal was written prior to Lunar New Year) 

Compassion house:

   Vietnam has lifted more than 35 million people out of poverty since the early 1990s due to rapid economic growth and reforms. However, nearly 11% of Vietnam's 90-million population is still living below the national poverty line of 400,000 Vietnamese dong (about US$20) per month in rural areas.

   Compassion House's has become one of our sustainable and frequent programs that aims to provide shelters to the poor and disadvantaged people in the countryside and bring hope to the parents and children. Quang Nam province, located in the central coastal region of Vietnam, is among the poorest regions and often affected by disasters. People are living in the risk of typhoons, torrential storms and flooding which seriously hit Vietnam annually.  It is also where we focus the most in launching the program.

   Most families are selected based on certain criteria that establish their need to benefit from the program. They are usually large families or even single parent families living in a poorly built house and where the conditions that the families were living in were especially difficult for the children. They almost have nowhere to study and play as the whole family usually shares a small space for everything.

   We recognized that building a decent place to live would create a much improved life for the families, giving the children a safe and warm home to grow up in and bringing back a sense of dignity for the parents and children.

    Since the beginning, 409 houses were built and given to the families. In 2017, we've built five durable, safe homes for economically disadvantaged families and one more is being built and expected to be finished before Lunar Tet holiday. Let's find out the story of the last family this year.

    Could you imagine a single mom and her son sharing a bed in a hut? That was the reality for Hanh and her son Thang. Hanh is earning a living by doing hiring jobs. She has serious colitis, which causes her to be unable to work long hours.

    It's heart-breaking to see the condition that they are living in. There is no bathroom or real kitchen. There is nothing valuable in the house. All they have is a hut which is built by pieces of wood, canvas and plastic bags to cover the roof and collected metal roofing from her neighbors. In rainy and windy season, the roof leaks seriously and that causes them to move to their neighbor's house. Both mother and son have two or three sets of old and usual clothes to wear at home. It is obviously an inconvenient and unhopeful life with no privacy and no space at all. We can say they live in nothing.

   Hanh shared she wishes to have a better house to live in so that her son has a better life and a better future. It's amazing and exciting to think of a dream coming true when we have philanthropists come and change their situation. The short visit put us in mixed feelings. We all hope for a transformation in their life condition when they will have their own house to welcome Tet holiday.

   Together we are doing this great thing. We greatly appreciate the time and support of the philanthropists and for joining your hands helping the poor in Viet Nam. Your help enables us to completely transform and improve lives of those like Hanh and her son Thang.

Water Filter:

   In Viet Nam, low-income families living in poorly built housing are trapped in annual cycles of frequent floods and landslides. It is reported that only 39% of the rural population has access to safe water and sanitation. Many people are living in the areas with a severe risk of polluted water sources that affects the public health. 

    In this situation, more than 1000 water filters were delivered to the people in need in recent years. In 2017, more than 500 filters were delivered through GIBTK team and its partners with the aim to improve access to clean water for both urban and rural populations.

   After the serious typhoon that wreaked havoc in central Viet Nam, flooding and landslides occurred that caused loss of power and lack of clean water.  According to the report, most dwellers in Tra Van village, Tra My district in Quang Nam province did not have access to clean water. Life must be terrifying there. That is my first feeling.

   In response to the calling from the local partner, our team quickly reached out to the area, delivering each water filter to the people in need. We provided them with training on use and maintenance.

    We do hope more families will receive access to clean water through the water filters in the future. It's exciting to see the huge impact that such a small, transportable product creates in the lives of thousands of people.

   Personally, I feel compassion for each program that GIBTK is carrying out and I can be a part of. We are together in the continual process of making a difference in transforming lives. To a certain extent, happiness is a choice. And my choice is exactly what I am doing at GIBTK for my own and others' happiness.

Sincerely Van Nguyen

><((((º>  BBlessed

www.gibtk.org
Robert Kalatschan
Giving It Back To Kids