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Mrs Khuong’s story

Just a few years ago, life was very different for Mrs Khuong.

She was living with her husband and two children in their own home in Quang Nam, Vietnam gifted to them by her in-laws. The young family were excited to have a fresh start, have a safe place to raise their children and lay down roots.

Sadly their hopes for the future came crashing down. One day her husband, who worked in construction had an accident on site and suddenly passed away leaving Mrs Khuong to raise their children on her own, the eldest being just two-years-old at the time.

The loss of her husband devastated Mrs Khuong. She struggled to provide for her children on a single income and debt piled up as she desperately tried to make ends meet.

Things sadly did not improve for the family and Mrs Khuong decided to move to her parents’ home where her brothers and sisters also lived. The old, dilapidated home could not accommodate Mrs Khuong’s family so they built a temporary shelter next to the main house where she and her two children lived. Their makeshift shelter, as well as her parent’s home was unable to provide the family protection from the severe weather conditions common to the disaster-prone region. When it rained, water poured in through the gaping holes in the roof and flooded the home.

old home

Mrs Khuong worried constantly about her children falling and how to give them a brighter future, particularly as she now began facing health troubles which limited the type of work she could perform and her ability to earn an income.

Faced with so many challenges – unable to afford treatment for herself, struggling to find work and providing for her children – Mrs Khoung put her dream of building a safe home to call her own on hold, and lived here for another five years.

Recently, Habitat for Humanity began working in Mrs Khoung’s community helping households build disaster resilient homes and provide training on disaster preparedness and health and hygiene.

As part of this, Mrs Khuong was selected as a home partner and received support to build a safe home of her own. The family moved into the home in April 2017.

“I have long dreamed of affording a small room to rent, but what I see in front of me now is really beyond my imagination. I am so happy,” said Mrs Khuong, standing out the front of her new home which was built with the help of local construction workers and Habitat for Humanity volunteers.

Her children are equally excited as they now have a house with room for them to learn, play and grow. Mrs Khuong’s eldest son said he used to struggle to study in their old home as they did not have sufficient lighting and the home was too wet and damp. “I will study English hard so that I can communicate with all the volunteers who helped me and my family build the house,” he said.

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