tragedy and triumph…
Sometimes it is hard to know when and how we each make a difference. Here’s a short story that brings joy to my heart, as I know the smiles I see are the start of healing for this young lady…. She has already made a big difference at the Seeds of Change with her sewing talents.
Meet HTwe or more formally Mrs. Than Than Htwe.
She was one of the destitute Myanmar migrant worker pregnancies and she received wonderful loving care and support through the Home for Hope project of the Good Shepherd Sisters. Her husband is one of the many unskilled workers, laboring in construction work in Phuket. HTwe’s stay with the Home for Hope project started in November 2014 and she was one of the many young ladies joining us for the Tuesday morning sewing sessions at the Seeds of Change Crafts Center.
On February 5, 2015, Mrs. Htwe delivered her son at Vachira Phuket Hospital. Although mother was fine, the infant was abnormally born with Omphalocele. This is a type of abdominal wall defect in which the intestines, liver, and occasionally other organs remain outside of the abdomen in a sac because of a defect in the development of the muscles of the abdominal wall. Neonatal care was given and the young mother continued to nurse the baby each day. Unfortunately the baby developed a serious case of pneumonia and peacefully died in the arms of his mother and father on the evening of March 6.
The Good Shepherd Home for Hope project supported all of hospital care fees and costs for funeral and traditional donation to them.
However the story does not end here……
Taught by her Aunt, Htwe learned how to sew from her relative and part owner of a sewing shop. Born January 1986 in Pauk Township, Mague Division of Myanmar, Htwe is now a proud paid assistant for the Home for Hope. As Assistant Staff of Project, she arranges breakfast, trainer of meditation, pregnancy work-out, and vocational sewing for other pregnant women. Her home with her husband is at Sam Kong, Tambon Ratsada.
Funds from The Phuket Mulligans will cover a portion of her salary with an upfront six month donation of 30,000 baht.
