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Two amazing young ladies will be today's authors. The first is, Katie, JoAn Hawley Verstraete's (founding board member) daughter who has volunteered for a number of years for Galas and any place else she could in the states. Finally she has come to Vietnam.
Here's Katie;
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| "parts? lots more parts???" |
It's the morning and we are headed to one of our recipient's home to build a wheelchair. Much to my surprise this is not one of the original white plastic chairs I am most familiar with, but instead a much sturdier version made of metal and lots of parts.
ha! I was told by Robert that this new improved version is a whopping $60 each. I have to say to myself, for $60 we can change a person's life. I love today.
The gentleman we are building a chair for is Mr. Luong Tan Thanh. He is 64 years old and has been married to his caring wife for 40 years. They had four children all are married except for his youngest son who is 26. They have 4 grandchildren as well. None live with them anymore.
Luong was a farmer until three years ago when one day he returned from the fields and suffered a stroke. For the first year after his stroke, he was able to minimally walk with the help of his wife, family or friends.
However for the past two years he was been bed ridden. In fact, his first son gave up his dream to build a home for his family to help pay his fathers medical bills.
Luong has not been outside his home for over a year. His one greatest desire is to be able to visit friend and neighbors and have a life outside his four walls.
Today, GIBTK has given this to him. I am so humbled and blessed to be a part of changing lives, one at a time.
Kylie Antonopoluous. The last 2 years I had the pleasure to be her "mentor" / helper for her Junior and senior projects. First year she learned what it took to run a non profit and for her senior year she actually filled for her own 501 c 3! A non-profit called Miss beloved which has pageant for special need girls.
Here's Kylie;
The Resilient bike man,
This is my first time in Vietnam. I didn't know what to expect when I came here. I didn't know the depth of perseverance that the Vietnamese people have.
We met a forty-five year old disabled man, while building a wheelchair for him. He has been disabled since birth, with only his mother and sister to take care of him. He works in a little shop, where he fixes motorbikes.
His entire left side of his upper body is paralyzed, leaving only his right hand to get him through his daily activities. His legs are also under developed, which led to the high demand for a wheelchair.
He had a wheelchair, but because of its years of use, it was broken and could not be repaired. As I looked at his wheelchair and then at his mother, I saw resilience in her. She was in no condition to push her grown son to work everyday. The walk is about 200 meters from the house; it's filled with mud and rocks, and can become wobbly at times, for a wheelchair.
Yet she is resilient, and she pushes her son, knowing that it is needed to be done, in order to have an income. As for the bike man, I found his resilience in the way he lived his life.
He never had the experiences that I had when I was little. It shows perception of the world. What one finds a necessity; another may not find a need for it. So as upset as I was, that this grown man did not get to share the same experiences, or have the same opportunities as I did, it did not mean his life was not filled with joy and happiness. And what inspires me most is through all of his life, he remains resilient.
BBlessed
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