Christina's Story
Christina Noble OBE is the founder and driving force behind the Foundation. Christina's passion for children's rights is rooted in her own upbringing. She knows what it's like to be young, homeless and desperate. Born in Ireland into the slums of Dublin on 23 December 1944, she and three siblings were raised by their mother while their father frittered away what little money the family had on drinking in pubs.
Christina, - far left- with her siblings
The death of her mother when Christina was 10 brought about the separation of the children, as they were all sent to different orphanages. Christina spent four desperate years in the west of Ireland in an institution being led to believe that her brothers and sisters were dead. Her escape brought her to Phoenix Park in Dublin where she slept in a park in a hole in the ground she’d dug herself.
At the age of 18 Christina ran away to England to be with her brother. This is where she met and married her husband and had three children, Helenita, Nicolas and Androula.
It was during this particularly low ebb in her life around 1971 that she had a dream about Vietnam.
"I don't know why I dreamed about Vietnam, perhaps it was because the country was so much in the news at the time. In the dream, naked Vietnamese children were running down a dirt road fleeing from a napalm bombing. The ground under the children was cracked and coming apart and the children were reaching to me. One of the girls had a look in her eyes that implored me to pick her up and protect her and take her to safety. Above the escaping children was a brilliant white light that contained the word 'Vietnam'."
This was a dream which she would one day triumphantly fulfil, albeit 20 years later. In 1989, with the goal to assist children in need, Christina arrived in Vietnam.
Against all odds, Christina set up the Foundation in Ho Chi Minh City where the number of programmes has grown considerably across Vietnam. In 1997, Christina expanded the Foundation's operations into Mongolia but she still remains the principal driving force and inspiration and retains close personal contact with the children.
At the age of 18 Christina ran away to England to be with her brother. This is where she met and married her husband and had three children, Helenita, Nicolas and Androula.
It was during this particularly low ebb in her life around 1971 that she had a dream about Vietnam.
"I don't know why I dreamed about Vietnam, perhaps it was because the country was so much in the news at the time. In the dream, naked Vietnamese children were running down a dirt road fleeing from a napalm bombing. The ground under the children was cracked and coming apart and the children were reaching to me. One of the girls had a look in her eyes that implored me to pick her up and protect her and take her to safety. Above the escaping children was a brilliant white light that contained the word 'Vietnam'."
This was a dream which she would one day triumphantly fulfil, albeit 20 years later. In 1989, with the goal to assist children in need, Christina arrived in Vietnam.
Against all odds, Christina set up the Foundation in Ho Chi Minh City where the number of programmes has grown considerably across Vietnam. In 1997, Christina expanded the Foundation's operations into Mongolia but she still remains the principal driving force and inspiration and retains close personal contact with the children.
Christina and her shunshine Children in Vietnam
Christina's Books |
'NOBLE' The Film |
Christina's life can be read in her international bestselling autobiography 'Bridge Across My Sorrows' (1994) and
her follow-up 'Mama Tina' (1999). |
'NOBLE' (Released in 2014 - 2015)
chronicles Christina’s life and how the Foundation first began. |
The Documentary
Christina Noble: In a House That Ceased To Be.
This feature-length documentary follows the humanitarian and children's rights activist, whose unwavering commitment and selfless efforts have seen her better the lives of countless children since 1989. Her drive stems from a childhood in Ireland fraught with poverty, loss and institutional abuse. Despite achieving so much in the face of adversity, Christina remains scarred by the memory of the children she was unable to save, her own brother and two sisters, who she was separated from at a very young age.
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