|
Young French
carries on her grandma’s cause on community work
Frenchwoman Jade Owhadi first heard of Agent
Orange (AO) from her French-Vietnamese grandmother when she was in high
school. This gave her a new perspective on life and bolstered her passion for
community work.
One step at a time: Jade
Owhadi, the 23-year old teacher in the US, has been an advocate for the
rights of Agent Orange victims. -Photos courtesy of Jade Owhadi
“My first reaction was complete horror at
the cruelty human beings are capable of. I decided to do a project on agent
orange for my advanced English classes at school and I ended up not only
educating my peers about it but the teacher as well, who had never heard
about it prior to my presentation,” said Owhadi.
Owhadi
decided to become an advocate for the rights of AO victims. The 23-year-old
first came to Viet Nam in 2014 and began working in Nha Trang with orphans
and disabled children.
Also
in this trip, Owhadi visited children at Tu Du Hospital, where she would
later revisit once a year, for the first time.
“That
was one of the most emotional moments I had experienced in my life. I
remember walking into one of the rooms with the most severely disabled
children, and I can still hear their screams of agony and pain resonating in
my ears.
“I
remember feeling stuck, like I was glued to the ground, the only thing I
wanted to do was to take that pain away from them, and hold them in my arms
and let them know everything was going to be okay, but I knew the damage from
Agent Orange is irreversible and I broke down,” said Owhadi.
“It’s
actually the children from the rest of the floor on the hospital who came and
got me with a huge smile on their face that made me regain the strength to
gather my composure because I didn’t want them to see me crying.”
Also
in 2014, Owhadi started a fundraiser for kids and the following summers when
she came back Viet Nam, she brought with her toys, books, clothes and gave
children an opportunity for a field trip.
It
was also the first trip to Viet Nam in 2014 that led Owhadi to do her
master’s degree in International Humanitarian Affairs. “I realised there was
a lot of things I needed to familiarise myself with regarding humanitarian
aid in foreign countries, therefore this programme was the best fit for me.”
She
is currently a French high school teacher for underprivileged kids at Davis
High School, Texas in the US.
An
empathetic person, Owhadi strongly believes “every human being deserves the
same basic human rights”.
“It
is only right for me to give back to those who haven’t been given the same
opportunities,” said Owhadi.
Owhadi
has also visited an orphanage in Malaysia, a community school in San Miguel
de Allende, Mexico as well as an NGO in Sierra Leone to raise funds for
disadvantaged people.
Every
year the French girl sent AO victims a package for Christmas with toys, and
over the summer, she went to the hospital every day, playing with them and
practicing English.
“Most
importantly I am able to give them the mother figure they desperately need. I
consider them my own kids. I actually have a board filled with pictures of
them at my desk at school, and will spend my year teaching the kids about
them and Agent Orange,” said Owhadi.
This
year, Owhadi brought in a Vietnamese teacher to continue teaching the kids
after she left.
The
kids, who spend most of their time in the hospital, can also go on a yearly
two-day field trip to the beach with the hospital staff.
“The
main thing these kids lack is a regular childhood experience. With the field
trips, they are able to play in the water, which they absolutely love, we go
out to eat, we dance, we sing and it is just a memorable journey full of
laughter, love, and pure joy,” said Owhadi.
Owhadi’s
grandmother, Anna Owhadi Richardson was born in Viet Nam in 1943. Her
grandfather, Pastor Paul Richardson and her Vietnamese grandmother helped
build the Da Lat Protestant Church.
Anna
got a scholarship to study medicine in French in 1961. She and her family
moved in 1964. Anna founded the Association of Friends of Da Lat, which aims
to improve the city of Da Lat, especially in terms of health, social and
educational development as well as promote co-operation between the people of
France and Viet Nam.
“Jade
Owhadi is among my six grandchildren. She is the brightest and a very
empathetic person, therefore I decided to talk to her about other aspects of
life and send her to Viet Nam to know about kids suffering from Agent Orange.
“I
am very proud of my little girl and hope that she will inspire this humanitarian
cause to other young people,” said Anna.
Give and take
With
compassion and love for kids and hope to raise awareness of the brutal impact
of AO, Owhadi has a Facebook and YouTube channel featuring the kids.
“I
have the kids on Facebook and they video call me when they have internet, and
I am always so excited to be able to see them. These kids are so full of life
and love, and it is a blessing for me to have them in my life.”
“They
may not realise it, but their strength gives me courage to keep fighting,”
said Owhadi.
About
two years ago during her last semester in college, an accident gave Owhadi
second degree burns on her legs, which left her pain for six months.
“It
was the kids that kept me going. Regardless of the pain they face every
single day, they never complain, they remain strong and optimistic, and I
told myself I owed it to them to remain strong. If they can do it, so can I,”
said Owhadi.
The
final year student was able to finish her undergraduate degree in Political
Science on time and came out stronger than ever.
“People
thank me for the work I do for them, but I thank the kids for allowing me to
have a place in their hearts. They are truly some of the most beautiful souls
I have encountered, and I can’t imagine my life without them,” said
Owhadi.
VNS
|
Chủ Nhật, 3 tháng 9, 2017
Đăng ký:
Đăng Nhận xét (Atom)
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét