At a late April ceremony at the Taoyuan center of the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families, a Vietnamese widow and mother of two was praised for her resilience and nominated as the county representative to accept the title of role model mother.
The woman surnamed Tran married her Taiwanese husband in 2000. They had two daughters, the younger one of whom was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism, the Liberty Times reported.
As well as taking care of her family, the new immigrant mother worked at a vocational training school, where she aided migrant workers handling complaints.
Sadly, in 2008 her husband was diagnosed with lymphoma which claimed his life seven years later. On top of this, Tran was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago.
Despite all this, Tran has remained positive as she believed that the worst had passed, and that she had to keep herself healthy to raise her daughters and witness them growing up.
She has not let her illness stop her from making breakthroughs. Last year Tran, studying in her spare time after work, completed a bachelor’s degree, which allowed her to find a better-paid job and at the same time set a good example for her girls.
Speaking as she accepted the award on April 21 on stage, Tran said there were many others who were deserving of the award, but nonetheless, she was grateful that her efforts were being recognized.