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Tuesday, 7 April 2015
{ 23:51 on 'Fish boy' }



It is a touching story of kindness and friendship that spans continents and has survived for years.A British grandmother who refuses to give in to the slave Vietnam suffered a mysterious skin condition after meeting him at an orphanage when he was only 3 years old. Love story of 15-year friendship between Brenda Smith, 78, and Min Anh - nicknamed Fish because his scaly skin condition. their first meeting, loyal Brenda had left his home in Benfleet, Essex, to spend three months in Vietnam, visiting Min Anh and take him out for a day trip by motorcycle.
The beginning: Brenda said the orphan, who is suffering from a debilitating skin condition sat in her lap at the orphanage and stayed for hoursExtraordinary kindness: British grandmother Brenda Smith with Min Anh during a recent visit. The pair met 15 years ago and Brenda as flown out to see him every year since

The beginning: Brenda said the orphan, who is suffering from a debilitating skin condition sat in her lap at the orphanage and stayed for hours


Close: Brenda has returned to Vietnam to see Min Anh every year for three months at a timeClose: Brenda has returned to Vietnam to see Min Anh every year for three months at a time 
Stories where Brenda alone take matters hospital authorities and change lives Min Anh is a new subject Extraordinary People documentary.Min Anh, dubbed Ka or fish, orphans by colleagues at Tu Du Peace Village where he lives, is tied to his bed for hours because the staff can not stop him scratching his itchy, scaly skin. but Brenda, grandmother and great grandmother of four and five, were determined to seek medical help for Min Anh, to improve daily life, and his long-term future.Brenda, who has been widowed twice, first fell in love with Vietnam in 1995 when he cycled across the country for the welfare of her second husband Baz.

Helping hand: Brenda was able to convince orphanage staff to untie Min Anh and found ways to ease his conditionThe couple met scores of children who have severe disabilities and birth defects caused by Agent Orange, a chemical that is dangerous to live in the soil and water supply after the pair Vietnam War. he returned to the United Kingdom is determined to help children, but as Baz took part in a charity swim he tragically suffered a heart attack and died suddenly at the age of Brenda 55.Heartbroken planned a visit to Vietnam in memory of her husband. But while volunteering at the orphanage, she fell in love with brave Min Anh, who was removed as a baby because his scaly skin caused by genetic condition.'All he wanted to do was sit in my lap, "he said. 'I sat there for a few hours and do not want to move. I fell in love with him and he was like that ever since.'Min Anh filled a gap in the life of a lonely retired after the loss of her beloved husband, he gave a new purpose and a reason to keep returning to Vietnam.

Painful: Min Anh's skin condition was caused by Agent Orange dropped during the Vietnam WarThe pair found a way of communicating, even though Min Anh, now 18, doesn’t speak English, and Brenda knows no Vietnamese.The determined widow, who has three grown up daughters, took on hospital authorities who left Min Anh tied to his bed for hours because they didn’t know how to treat him.'When I first went to see him at Tu Du Hospital, he was tied up from morning to night, so he wouldn’t scratch himself,' said Brenda.'The staff didn’t know how to help him. I hated to see him like that, without any toys or amusement.'But Brenda’s persistence paid off, and staff allowed the kindly English lady to untie Min Anh and take him out for day trips around Ho Chi Min City.





Min AnhA Vietnamese friend loaned Brenda a motorbike, so she could drive around the streets with Min Anh, taking in all the sights and sounds.Brenda took her young friend to shops and restaurants, buying him meals, clothes and toys, and treating him like her adoptive son.'When I took him out for pizza, he ate normally. He just needs someone to spend time with him,' said Brenda.'Just walking around the supermarket is like a treat to Min Anh because the cold air soothes his skin.'When we got back to the ward, he’d walk back to his bed and tie himself up again because he was used to it.'

Loving: Brenda with her late husband Barry, who had resolved to help the Vietnamese children before his untimely deathLoving: Brenda with her late husband Barry, who had resolved to help the Vietnamese children before his untimely death


Brenda admits her daughters Carol, 55, Deborah, 52, and Claire, 38, at first thought she was crazy to be so attached to a boy on the other side of the world. 'They’d say: "Oh mum, why do you want to speak your time worrying about a boy who lives thousands of miles away?",' she said. Brenda, a former secretary who has no medical knowledge, spent years trying to find a doctor to diagnose Min Anh’s skin condition but had no idea where to start. She said: 'When it was time to go back to England it was heartbreaking. 'Min Anh always said he loves me very much, and understands that I have to go home. But he’d be waiting for me. 'I knew if I could get him help, he wouldn’t be tied up anymore. The documentary, A Boy They Call Fish, follows Brenda’s most recent visit to Vietnam in early 2012, as an expert dermatologist is called in to try to diagnose and treat Min Anh.is also determined to find a friend for the teenager, to look out for him and take him on days out when she is not there. The film follows her efforts to find answers for Min Anh’s rare skin condition and to transform the boy’s life for the better. A new Extraordinary People documentary, The Boy They Call Fish, airs on Channel 5 at 9pm on Thursday June 21.