Blood bond with compatriots

For over a year, Pham Van Duy, a member of the Forest Protection and Development Team 155, has considered Hoanh Mo commune as his second hometown. After graduating from the Vietnam Polytechnic College, Duy did not choose to work in urban areas but volunteered to go to the border area. “I have read many good models implemented by the Forest Protection and Development Team in economic and defense zones. When I heard about the recruitment, I immediately registered with the desire to contribute a small part to building my hometown in the Northeast,” Duy confided.

Young intellectual volunteers from Forestry Farm 103 instruct people in Quang Duc commune, Quang Ninh province on techniques for taking care of seedlings.

Setting off with knowledge and youthful enthusiasm, Duy and his team members clearly felt the hardships and deprivations of the highland people. Most of the villages are far from the center, the roads are narrow and dangerous, especially in the rainy season. Many places still have backward customs, fragmented production, and children drop out of school early to work to help their families. Faced with these realities, the team members determined to "do 4 things together" with the villagers: eat together, live together, work together, and speak the ethnic language together. That is the way to understand the people, be close to the people, and help them effectively. Military Region 3 and Economic-Defense Group 327 have organized training courses for the Youth Union on mass mobilization skills, agricultural and forestry knowledge, local languages ​​and customs, and how to handle storms, floods, and landslides. Thanks to that, the team members are more confident and courageous in their work.

Lighting up the future on the frontier

The appearance of the TTTTN has brought about clear changes in the lives of people in border areas. The story of Voong Van Tri, a Dao ethnic group, in Pac Nay village, Quang Duc commune is a proof. As the youngest child in a large family, and in a particularly difficult situation, Tri had to leave school early to help his parents with farming. Knowing the situation, the TTTTN team members of Forestry Division 103 coordinated with the commune working group to visit the family's house to persuade them, support books, monthly study expenses and directly tutor him every evening. "Thanks to the TTTTN uncles and aunts, I was able to go back to school. Every evening, the uncles and aunts come to my house to teach me how to write and do math. I am very happy, and when I go to class, I am always praised by the teacher," Tri shared.

Young volunteer intellectuals of Forestry Farm 42 propagate and disseminate the law to people of Hai Son commune, Quang Ninh province.

Not only helping children go to school, the team members also accompany the villagers to develop their livelihoods and improve their lives. A typical example is the case of Mr. Bui Van Thoan, Dao ethnic group, Hai Son commune. Previously, his family lived mainly on traditional agriculture , lacking technical knowledge, so production was ineffective. Thanks to the TTTTN team members and Forestry Station 42 officers "holding hands", instructing on planting and raising techniques, supporting working days and plants and seeds, he boldly developed a 3,500m² farm model, earning hundreds of millions of VND each year. Mr. Thoan was moved: "When I didn't know how to do it, the young uncles and aunts did not hesitate to come to the place to teach me. They helped my family overcome the most difficult period. Now that life is more stable, I can guide the villagers."

Since the beginning of 2024, the Youth Union members of the 327th Economic-Defense Group have coordinated to deploy 6 "Smart Mass Mobilization" models and 4 agro-forestry models suitable to the actual conditions of each locality. The models not only create sustainable livelihoods for people but also promote awareness change, improve people's knowledge, and contribute to maintaining political stability, order, and social security in border areas.

In that journey, TTTTN not only brought knowledge and skills but also responsibility, love and sharing. They sowed seeds of hope in every forest, mountainside; every house, every rice field. Their footprints were on the red dirt road, but their faith lit up the whole frontier land and sky.

Article and photos: PHAM QUYET

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/quoc-phong-an-ninh/quoc-phong-toan-dan/tri-thuc-tre-o-vung-bien-gioi-847075