| Article Index |
|---|
| Tzu Chi Annual Grant-in-Aid Presentation - A Token to Ease the Burden of Parents |
| The Cycle of Love |
| They Must Go to School |
| Light at the End of the Tunnel |
| Bring Hope to Temerloh |
| All Pages |
Page 3 of 5
They Must Go to School
Volunteers from Tzu Chi Klang visited 1,450 families and approved 1,041 applications from students for the grant-in-aid. The grant-in-aid was given out in five presentation ceremonies.
Nora came with her son, Aidit Lai. She said her husband has two families and he seldom comes home. He works as a wireman but has asthma and is presently on medication. The family of five survives with only RM400 a month given by her husband. Nora said she would rather starve then let her children miss school. Now that she has the grant-in-aid from Tzu Chi to take care of the school opening expenses, she would send her 5 year-old son to kindergarten too.
Parvathy is a single mother. She has a tumor as big as a fist on her neck. Before having the tumor, she could make RM40 by working in the oil palm estate for two days in a month. She has no income for months already.Ten years ago, Parvathy left her husband with her three children as she could no longer put up with his abusive behaviour after drinking and also because he did not have a proper job. Evidence of her suffering could be seen from the scars on her arms. In addition to this, two of her children ran away from home to be with friends. Rajamah is the only child still staying with her.
Both of them are staying in a room they rent from a friend, and they are three months behind in their rental. They are lucky that the friend still allows them to stay on.
"We ate whatever others gave us, or just skipped the meal…" Parvathy was seen trying hard to hold back her tears as she said this.
"I will use the grant-in-aid for my son's education although he is a slow learner. I just hope that he could study a bit more. Thank you!"
Hardworking and contented
Sevalingam contracted polio at the age of 26. He and his wife rear chicken and plant vegetables on a plot of land in the estate to feed their four children. They also receive RM300 monthly from the Welfare Department.
"My children can buy reference books next year with this money. My children are hard working and the teachers always give them free tuition." Sevalingam's eldest son got 5As and 2Bs for the UPSR examination this year. All his children understand their parents' difficulties well.
Sevalingam said, "I always tell them not to worry about money, just study hard!" Although disabled, Sevalingam is positive and very confident that his children will have a bright future if they are allowed to study without worry.
