New joy from the elementary school sponsored by the Golden Heart Fund

More than 20 years looking forward to a new classroom building

In the morning, at Lang Cau school point, the sound of students reading lessons echoed from bright rooms. Tables and chairs were neatly arranged, classroom walls were clean, windows were wide, and light flooded in. Outside in the yard, groups of students chatted and played before the bell rang to signal class time.

That simple scene today has a special meaning for teachers and people here. Because just a few years ago, what worried teachers and parents was not how to make schools and classrooms more beautiful, but first of all how to have classrooms that are safe enough for students.

Lang Thanh Primary School was established in 1957, previously having 3 school sites. Among them, the school site in Lang Cau hamlet is considered the place with the most difficult facilities.

In the 2023 - 2024 school year, this school branch alone has 5 classes with 124 students. The facilities include 3 level 4 buildings. The most worrying thing is the main school building with 3 rooms built nearly 40 years ago. After a long period of use, the project is increasingly degraded.

Right from 2000, the school had a submission requesting the Commune People's Committee to have a plan to build a new row of rooms because the old building no longer ensured the desired conditions. However, from a proposal on paper to a new row of classrooms is a very long distance for a locality still facing budget difficulties.

Year after year, many other investment tasks also require resources. People's lives are mainly associated with agricultural production, and local socialization capacity is limited. The desire to have new classrooms has therefore lasted for more than 20 years.

Mr. Nguyen Ba Tin - former Principal of Lang Thanh Primary School, now Deputy Principal of Giai Lac 2 Primary School after school arrangement - said that the facilities at Lang Cau point were once a constant concern of the school.

Old classrooms have been in use for decades, while they still have to serve the learning of hundreds of students every day.

“The thing we longed for most at that time was for students to have solid and safe classrooms. The school has been petitioning for a long time but also understands that the locality still has many difficulties, and the budget must be balanced for many tasks," teacher Nguyen Ba Tin shared.

For parents, that worry is even more specific. Ms. Pham Thi Phuong - formerly Chairwoman of the Parents' Association of Lang Cau hamlet, now Secretary of the Party Cell of Lang Cau hamlet - recalled that people all want their children to study in spacious schools, but the economic conditions of most families do not allow mobilizing a large amount of money to build classrooms.

According to Ms. Phuong, many parents live on agriculture, and their income is still precarious. Contributing small amounts to support school operations has been calculated, so mobilizing people to build a whole row of new classrooms is almost beyond their capacity.

Parents are very worried when classrooms have been used for too long. Everyone hopes for a new school for their children, but people here are still in difficulty. Therefore, when they know that units are supporting the construction of classrooms, people are very excited," Ms. Phuong said.

Faced with that situation, the local government has proposed that the Yen Thanh District People's Committee previously submit a report to the Tam Long Vang Charity Social Fund, wishing to receive resources to build the project.

From the proposal of the locality, the Golden Heart Charity Fund - Lao Dong Newspaper has connected and mobilized businesses to join hands. Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd. accompanies the program, supporting 300 million VND to build a new classroom building. The project has a total investment of 1.5 billion VND. In addition to 300 million VND sponsored by Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd. through the Golden Heart Charity Fund, the remaining funding is mobilized from other legal capital sources.

On June 7, 2024, the project officially started construction. That is also the time when the desire that has lasted for more than two decades of many generations of teachers, parents and students began to become a reality. Mr. Nguyen Ho Son - former Chairman of Lang Thanh Commune People's Committee, now Vice Chairman of Giai Lac Commune People's Committee - said that the locality has identified this as a particularly practical project because the direct beneficiaries are students.

In the context of limited local resources, the Golden Heart Fund - Lao Dong Newspaper connecting businesses to participate has helped remove a difficulty that has existed for many years.

According to Mr. Son, since the project was deployed, local officials have regularly gone to the scene to grasp the situation, coordinate with schools, construction units, sponsors and representatives of the Golden Heart Fund to handle arising issues.

The construction process has periods of unfavorable weather affecting the organization of construction, transportation of raw materials and progress of some items. Local officials and schools regularly stick to the project, both urging and encouraging construction units to take advantage of favorable weather days to deploy, but still have to put quality and safety requirements first.

The locality hopes the project will be completed soon, but not underestimate the quality because of the progress. This is a school, which will serve many generations of students, so it must be done more carefully, ensuring sustainability," Mr. Son shared.

Each brick is built, new walls gradually take shape. For people who have been waiting for a new row of classrooms for more than 20 years, the project is therefore always receiving special attention. Some people pass by and stop by to look. Parents ask teachers when the classrooms will be completed. Students eagerly await the day they will be moved to new rooms. After many months of construction, the classrooms that were once just a wish have finally materialized.

New school, new joy

April 28, 2025 is a memorable day for teachers and students of Lang Thanh Elementary School. Three new classrooms have been officially handed over, promptly serving teaching and learning needs. From an old row of rooms that has existed for nearly 40 years, Lang Cau school point now has more solid, clean and convenient rooms. The handover ceremony was attended by representatives of Tam Long Vang Charity Social Fund; Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd.; Education sector; local authorities and officials, teachers, parents and students.

Along with funding to support the construction of classrooms, at the handover ceremony, Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd. also presented the school with a 55-inch TV worth 12 million VND and many gifts for students.

Mr. Le Anh Duc - Deputy Director of Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd. - said that accompanying the Golden Heart Charity Social Fund to support the construction of classrooms stems from the desire for businesses to contribute a practical part to the community, especially children in areas with difficult learning conditions.

We are very happy that the contributions of the business together with the Golden Heart Fund and the locality have contributed to creating new classrooms for the children. We hope that in better learning conditions, the children will love the school more, love the class more and strive to study to become useful people for their homeland in the future," Mr. Le Anh Duc shared.

For teacher Nguyen Ba Tin, the handover day of the project closed a journey that the school had been waiting for for a very long time. "The school greatly appreciates the concern of the Party, State, local authorities, the Golden Heart Charity Fund - Lao Dong Newspaper, Petrolimex Asphalt Co., Ltd. and the units that accompanied us. The most meaningful thing for us is that students have had a better learning environment," teacher Tin said.

The school also determined that investing in new facilities means the responsibility to manage and use the project effectively. According to teacher Tin, teachers and students are regularly reminded to preserve property, clean classrooms, use equipment for the right purpose and promptly maintain it when necessary so that the project can serve for a long time.

When handing over, the school sets a goal that from improved facilities, it will continue to improve the quality of education, towards building school sites that meet increasingly high criteria.

Teacher Bui Xuan Tram - in charge of the Lang Cau school site area - is one of the people who directly felt the change clearly. "Our teachers are very happy. When school conditions improve, teachers are more assured and students are also more excited. We determine that we must use the project effectively, preserve it well so that many students in the future can continue to benefit," said teacher Tram.

After arranging the school system, Lang Thanh Primary School previously had organizational changes. Teacher Nguyen Ba Tin is currently working at Giai Lac 2 Primary School in the position of Vice Principal.

Dao Thi Oanh - class monitor of class 5A10 - said that she and her friends both like new classrooms because they are clean, beautiful and convenient. Teachers often tell students not to write or draw on desks, chairs and classroom walls, maintain hygiene, and preserve the equipment. "I am very happy to study in the new classroom. I thank the aunts and uncles for helping us have a beautiful classroom. We will work together to maintain the school and try to study really well," Oanh said.

People are very grateful to the Party, State, local authorities, Golden Heart Fund - Lao Dong Newspaper and sponsors. We will continue to remind our children to preserve schools so that the project can be used for a long time," Ms. Phuong shared.

Every morning, when the classroom door opens, the sound of reading lessons echoes in the new classrooms. That is the longest measure of the meaning of a project created from sharing.

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