Nanny Stenman Visit--Page 6 After visiting LMDS and the classrooms, we took Nanny to visit the family of one of our deaf students. A widowed mother takes care of three children and her elderly mother in a small house set up the bank of the Mekong River. She supports them by fishing every day from a small skiff which she keeps tied under the house.

The mother was widowed four years ago and lives in real poverty with her children. Her older son is 26 and deaf, and comes to our DDP program. Kim, our program manager, has a gift for talking to anyone and becoming a friend, probably due to her own sufferings under the Khmer Rouge. The five people live in one room made of bamboo slats. The mats keep the mosquitoes from coming though the floor at night. There are no closets or cabinets. All three children have medical problems or disabilities. The 12-year old boy quit school to help his mother fish but contracted a water-borne disease that partially paralyzed him. This is the mother's fishing boat beneath their house. She had to sell another boat and a cow and then borrow $40 from neighbors and with that got just two days of antibiotics for her sick 12-year old. This is a perfect example of the cycle of poverty leading to illness leading to more poverty. Index   |   Page 1   |   Page 2   |   Page 3   |   Page 4  |   Page 5  |   Page 6 Go to Nanny Stenman visit main page Go to Charlie Dittmeier's home page