A teacher from Thanh Hoa City has been living with kidney failure for three years but kept her great teaching passion while continuing to fight against the disease.
Despite her illness Lien still attends class regularly
Nguyen Thi Kim Lien, 40, teaches at Thieu Duong Primary School in Thanh Hoa City. Due to her kidney failure, she has to go to hospital three times per week for treatment. However, illness has not stopped her from teaching. She considers her career a motivation to survive.
“During the first days, when I was at the hospital, I was so debilitated that I thought I might not ever be able to stand in front of a class again. However, when I got better, I returned to school, and teaching gives me hope and will to overcome my challenges,” Lien said.
Lien has worked as a teacher for more than 20 years and has gained a number of achievements before her disease set in. Now, she is stilled admired by her colleagues for her courage in life and at work.
The teacher has had an unfortunate life as her mother died when she was a little girl and her father married again.
When she got married, happiness, fortune did not smile with her, as the disease stopped her from having a baby.
Now she is living alone in a small house. Her husband works away from home to settle their debts and support her treatment.
Working a motivation for survival
Several times, as she has had to undergo treatment at hospital without a relative by her side. Her only consolation is the hope of recovering and getting back to work.
“I’ll try to work as long as I can. Sometimes, I just wish that I had a child,” she said.
There was a time when their family was in desperate economic difficulties and her husband intended to sell their house to get money for her treatment, as it costs up to between VND500 million and VND700 million (USD23,679-USD33,120). She turned this option down for fear of having nowhere to go.
Pham Thi Lan Anh, Principle of Thieu Duong Primary School said, “Despite her illness, Lien doesn’t let it affect her teaching. We plan to ask that the municipal Department of Education of Training assign Lien to do some administrative tasks in addition to teaching if she becomes too ill so she can retain her income during treatment."
In order to help Lien, donations should be sent through:
1. Code 1235: Teacher Nguyen Thi Kim Lien, Thieu Duong Primary School, Thanh Hoa City, Thanh Hoa Province
Mobile: 0984.570.259