The community class in Phong Binh commune, cluster 2 was established in March 2021 with six children with different types of disabilities. After discussion in the parents’ group, Mr. M Q B, the owner and also grandfather of one of the children with disabilities, has agreed to have his home where the class is organized and will work with other parents to support the class.

Seeing the children attentively studying and playing together, he was also happy. “If the project runs out of support later, I will keep the class with other parents because it is very meaningful to our children,” he said.

 The class is often in the morning at weekends, lasting about two hours with learning and playing activities at the children’s interest such as reading and writing letters, coloring, practicing mobility exercises, etc. The parents take their children here and stay a bit longer afterward to help with cleaning and arranging. Children’s siblings are encouraged to join, allowing parents to take care of them all while they spend time playing and learning together. After nearly three months, initial changes have brought joy and smiles to both children and parents.

Mrs. Tr Th T, mother of Ng Q A, a boy with disability, said, “With a new wheelchair supported by the project in April 2021, it is more comfortable because it fits him. I can take him with his younger sister in a wheelchair to the clas,s which is near our home. Previously, his hands and legs were quite stiff. Still, since practicing rehabilitation exercises every day following the therapist’s advice, he had been less stiff and could move from here to there better. He often uses a parallel bar at the window in the class to stand up and step up a bit”.

This is the sixth community-based class within the “Empowering People with disabilities” funded by Caritas Australia and DFAT in Gio Linh district, Quang Tri province, through SRD. Before setting up a new one, the parents could visit current ones to know how it worked and how the parents should participate to encourage their children, and how the parents from the current ones could join to help the new ones at the first steps. “I am a bit afraid when being introduced to this class because I wonder how I could help. However, being a caregiver, joining the project community rehabilitation collaborators, and also being a mother of two children, I agreed. After nearly three months of seeing the parents and their children attending regularly and excitedly, the children have learnt how to read, to write, and to color. The children smiled more often, and so did the parents. Observing changes to the children when learning and playing with their parents and siblings, I believe that there will be more changes in the near future with great love and effort all around”.