Relationship with Child Sponsor Motivates Student to Overcome Obstacles

Chi Duc was born in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. When he was three years old, his father passed away. Life became hard and miserable as his mother had to take care of three children on a very low income. Chi Duc and his two elder sisters were welcomed into Friendship Orphanage in 2016. Friendship Orphanage is one of the seven orphanages supported by Pearl S. Buck International.

Chi Duc was five years old when he entered the orphanage and started a new life. In the beginning, finding himself in new and strange surroundings, Chi Duc was quiet, shy, and spoke very little. He gradually got accustomed with his new living environment and with his foster siblings and housemothers. He became active, sociable, eager to learn, and happy.

Child Sponsorship Encourages Chi Duc to Be More Confident

In 2017, Chi Duc was sponsored through Pearl S. Buck International. The support of his sponsor encourages him and makes him more optimistic and confident. Encouraging letters and monthly cash gifts have created an intimate bond between him and his sponsor even though they live far away from each other. They began as little more than strangers but are now close at heart. The love and caring of his sponsor and dedicated housemothers in the orphanage are a huge encouragement for Chi Duc to put much effort into his learning. He is smart, mature, active, and sociable. He is a very emotional child and cares about the people around him. He always achieves excellent grades in school and is usually one of the top 5 best students in the class.

Love of Sports Motivates Athletic Achievements

Apart from his outstanding academic achievements, Chi Duc also loves sports; he has won a number of competitions such as third prize in the school-level soccer team, third prize at district level shuttlecock, and second prize in district level basketball. At school, he always enthusiastically participates in all extracurricular activities and clubs. He is appreciative to have benefited from the Pearl S. Buck International Vietnam project providing students with school supplies.

This year, Chi Duc is in 7th grade at Thai Thinh Secondary School. He continues to study hard and spends his free time playing sports to keep fit and healthy. In the future, his goal is to pursue his passion and become a basketball coach.

Chi Duc has a good life today, thanks to the caring, encouragement, and support of his sponsor through letters, photos, and small gifts. It is a huge motivation for him to overcome obstacles in life and make the greatest effort to pursue his aspirations, achieve his goals, and become a helpful citizen in the future. Thank you to Chi Duc’s sponsor for inspiring all his current achievements and to all our sponsors for helping all the children in our sponsorship program succeed and have a chance at a bright future!