Part 3: Cultivating friendship

The “Adopted Children of Điện Biên Police” model not only nurtures the aspirations of those facing severe adversity, but also fosters the great friendship, special solidarity, and enduring loyalty between Việt Nam and Laos from today into the future.

When affection bears fruit

Healthy children continue to mature within an atmosphere of tender care and steadfast guidance. Behind innocent smiles and increasingly confident strides are transformations quantified by deeply meaningful milestones. Regular physical monitoring indicates that 100% of children at the shelter have recorded noticeable improvements in height and weight. After six months, each child gained an average of 1.5 to 2.5kg in weight and 2 to 4cm in height, with 100% meeting fundamental physical benchmarks suited to their age groups. Behind these sweet fruits lies a scientific nutritional regimen, paired with the attentive, round-the-clock dedication of special “adoptive fathers” overseeing every meal and resting hour.

From initial days of unfamiliarity, when some could not speak a complete Vietnamese sentence, children at the shelter have grown confident conversing, studying, and bonding with peers. This outcome stems from patient, rigorous coaching, especially tailored for young Lao pupils. Currently, more than 90% of Lao students have attained competency under the Vietnamese language framework for foreigners, possessing adequate proficiency to communicate and study under the 2018 General Education Program. Vietnamese children who once suffered severe deprivation have also had learning gaps remediated in timely fashion, gradually reclaiming their self-assurance to advance alongside classmates.

“In the first days, learning Vietnamese was very difficult, and because many words were confusing, I had to strive day by day. With teachers in class and police officers constantly encouraging and guiding me, I gained even more motivation. Now I am more confident communicating and studying. I will try my best to study well so that later I can return and help my homeland,” shared Thị Va Sạ Mun Tha, from Phôn Sạ Át village, Phiang district, Xayabury province (Laos).

Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyễn Mạnh Ngọc, Deputy Head of the Mobile Police Division under the provincial Police Department and Head of the Student Management Board, shared that after receiving care, nurturing, and schooling within a tailored setting, organizers are delighted to witness marked strides across physical health, academic performance, and personal discipline. Health, height, and weight metrics have improved across the board; scholastic progress is steady, particularly Lao students’ mastery of Vietnamese. Most encouragingly, the children have grown confident, sociable, self-reliant, and proactive in their studies. This reflects regular care and affection, alongside personal perseverance by the children themselves and dedicated efforts from teachers, officers, and soldiers directly tasked with their upbringing.

Through daily love and support, the young buds at the Nhân Ái - Hữu Nghị Shelter are steadily maturing, carrying knowledge, confidence, and cherished memories. Every step forward they take today represents seeds nurturing Việt Nam - Laos friendship, ensuring those noble values endure and flourish across generations.

Green sprouts cultivating friendship

Vietnamese and Lao children chatter merrily and call out to one another across the courtyard, their clear laughter resounding beneath a shared roof. Boundaries of geography and language gradually dissolve, making way for genuine, innocent camaraderie. At the Nhân Ái - Hữu Nghị Shelter, 50 children study, live, and grow together, including 12 international students hailing from six northern Lao provinces. Each comes from a different homeland, circumstance, personal narrative, and dream, yet once gathered here, unfamiliar faces steadily become brothers and sisters, caring for and lifting one another up.

From unpretentious friendship and ordinary daily moments of mutual sharing, affection among the youth of Việt Nam and Laos is cultivated day by day. These seeds of love sown today will mature alongside the children, blossoming into fond memories and reinforcing the solidarity and friendship between both nations.

In a modest study corner, Phon Ạ Nụ Sít Phum Sạ Vẳn, from Huổi Xay Tạy village, Houayxay district, Bokeo province (Laos), reviews lessons alongside Vietnamese friends. Over clean notebook pages scented with fresh paper, Vietnamese characters are carefully penned stroke by stroke, at times with slight hesitation. Beside him, friends enthusiastically offer pointers amid bright laughter, narrowing distances of language and nationality.

“Vietnamese friends are very approachable and cheerful. Here, we share everyday joys together. Whenever I struggle with a lesson or feel confused, they come over to assist me. I feel everyone loves one another like siblings under one roof. To me, the shelter is not just a place to study, but where I have gained many dear friends,” Phon Ạ Nụ Sít Phum Sạ Vẳn expressed.

Having never envisioned having friends from Laos, Vietnamese children welcomed their peers with innocence, closeness, and heartfelt warmth. Through shared routines and mutual assistance, they grew close-knit, staying attached to one another each passing day. Sentiments forged in childhood are blossoming, becoming an emotional thread uniting young hearts.

Vàng A Trường, from Nậm Chim village, Si Pa Phìn commune, shared that thanks to his Lao friends, he has learned many Lao words and gained a deeper understanding of the land and people where his friends were born. He loves hearing a new story every day and discovering fascinating details about their homeland. They study together, play together, and share numerous joyful memories. He noted that even if each person returns to a different home in the future, the days spent studying and playing side by side will remain cherished memories, affirming that he will miss his friends and wants to preserve this friendship forever.

In the heart of heroic Điện Biên Phủ, where Việt Nam - Laos solidarity was forged through momentous historical eras, children from remote hamlets now meet beneath a nurturing home. From small hands learning to hold tightly together, youthful hearts grow deeply attached. That affection is sowing green sprouts of friendship, ensuring the special solidarity between Việt Nam and Laos continues and flourishes alongside them.