Longwan Caring Home is located in Dahua County, which was listed as one of the poorest counties in Guangxi Province. Longwan Caring Home is a big family consisting of orphans, single parents, and abandoned children. The normal expense of the Home is sustained by plantation, breeding, and small business. Getting ready for the party night This summer, 12 students studying in Luoyang Charity Vocational School came back to Longwan. To show what they had learned, we organized a party named Thank Charity Party. Meng Jingkan was elected general director of the party. He would be responsible for planning, hosting and instructing for the parting.
The first thing was to make performance props. Though Meng Jingkan is good at sports, he would made props carefully by himself. We visited parents and people living around to watch the performances. At 8:00 pm of July 14, 2015, the party officially opened. It was a successful party with nice atmosphere. People were reluctant to leave when the party was over. Original article written by Ban Aihua, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang In partnership with the World Toilet Organization and Wetlands Work! we are helping schools in 4 floating villages in Cambodia get environmentally friendly toilets specifically designed for their unique situation. The IssueThe young students living on Cambodia's largest lake, the Tonle Sap, live in houses and attend schools that actually float on the lake! However, their schools don't have toilets, because until now, it hasn’t been possible to build one in a floating village. Around the world, marginalized, landless populations live in floating dwellings, migrating with the seasons. Floating settlements are found in Nigeria, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Brazil, and many other nations. In Cambodia almost 100,000 people live in floating communities on the Tonle Sap Lake, with the vast majority having no access to a toilet. There is also little awareness of the link between sanitation and health. People living in floating communities use the lake water for all their needs: bathing, washing, cooking, swimming, and drinking, and also as an open bathroom. Diarrhea-causing pathogens, including amoebic dysentery, cholera, and hepatitis, spread through contaminated water. In Cambodia, diarrheal diseases cause 1 in 7 deaths of children under 5 years of age, and those who survive frequent diarrheal episodes may suffer from developmental difficulties throughout their lives. Since the households float on water and migrate through the seasons, common sanitation technologies like pit latrines and sewers cannot be built. In partnership with the World Toilet Organization (WTO) we want to improve sanitation conditions for rural school children in China. According to UNICEF only 64% of the population in China have improved toilets. An improved, hygienic latrine is one that adopts reinforced concrete structure, separates human excreta from human contact, and ensures that the excreta do not pollute the environment. Provision of hygienic toilets effectively eliminates breeding ground forparasites and vector-borne diseases such as mosquitoes. A 2007 national survey by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that only 24% of schools had improved toilets. Most toilets in Chinese rural schools face the same challenges, as proper hygiene in schools is not considered a priority for most communities and municipalities. These old school toilets typically are not connected to a flushing system, most are without handwashing facilities, and the excreta disposal are normally located right behind the toilet building, uncovered and exposed to the environment (Figure 1). There is no management system in place to keep facilities clean every day, and children do not practice proper hygiene, all of which can lead to both health and environmental problems. In other words, there is a need for sustainable Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). On November 7, we called Maimai’s mother and asked about their recent situation. Maimai’s mother said 2 children went to school in the county. They rented a small room with 1400RMB a year. The children were nervous about their school life before the school started. 2 children had learned little in the village school. Maimai did not know how to calculate 2 plus 3. Their parents has not been educated and they could not tuition their children. Maimai’s mother told the children to study hard and learn as much as possible.
Maimai is in grade 2 and her sister is in grade 3. They would cry when they could not finish their homework after school. Her mother was helpless, so she took them to ask other children’s parents. The children were reluctant to go at first. After a few time, they were not afraid. Maimai’s mother also said she kept taking the medicines they had brought from Lanzhou in August. Her mother got cold a few days ago. She did injection in hospital. She breathed oxygen at home when she was not feeling well. She was getting better. She said they had to spend about 100RMB a day, the money was almost used up. She called Maimai’s father for some more money, but he had barely spare money for them. Her father works in a construction site in Xi’an, which would last for 2 months. Her mother said though they spent more money in the city, 2 children made progress recently. It seemed her mother’s choice is right—try her best to let the children have better education.Thank everyone for your care for Maimai’s family. Original article written by Ying Guan, translated and edited by Maggie Li Grounded on core values of respect, love, and service to the elderly, the Xin Yue Senior Citizen Service Center of Chongqing, China, promotes social work services for senior citizens and builds harmonious living environment for them.
On June 28, we held birthday party for senior citizens who were born in June. In the afternoon, volunteers, children and senior citizens spent a cheerful birthday party. There were 40 senior citizens and their average age is beyond 80. The hot weather did not disturb their happiness. They came to the party site early. The volunteers were busy to take care of people, organizing room, sending fruits and helping senior citizens to find seats. There were over 30 volunteers who provided very consideration services. Looking at the busy volunteers, a grandpa could not help saying, “I have not had my birthday for years. It’s really great to spend my birthday with all of them. Thank you so much!” The activity lasted for 2 hours. The senior citizens performed Peking Opera. The little volunteers also presented their performances. The volunteers said although they gave up their rest time on weekend, it’s meaningful to dedicate love to senior citizens. Original article written by Ling Feng, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang Longwan Caring Home is located in Dahua County, which was listed as one of the poorest counties in Guangxi Province. Longwan Caring Home is a big family consisting of orphans, single parents, and abandoned children. The normal expense of the Home is sustained by plantation, breeding, and small business. Meng Guangui is 13. His father died when he was 3 months and his mother married again and left his brother and him. 2 boys and their cousin had been living together. Their auntie had been taking care of them, but she was died a few years later. They had to live with another relative. Life is difficult for them.
In the spring of 2011, Guangui and his brother came to Longwan. In the morning of June 16, we found Guangui got fever and nose bleeding. The teacher took him to hospital. The examination showed he got sinusitis and pulmonary infection. He was admitted by hospital. The doctor had suggested him to stay in hospital for 2 weeks. In the morning of June 23, the doctor informed that he could leave hospital. During the following days, he was fine. One day, his roommates were awoken by his cry. When the teacher was called, he said he felt pain on the left side of stomach. We also found he got fever. We took him to hospital again. Guangui was diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis. The doctor said he had to be treated at local hospital. Finally, we decided to let him to be treated in the hospital in Nanning City. For the following days, Guangui will stay in Nanning City the 4th People’s Hospital. The costs was estimated about 8000RMB which is much for the family and Longwan. They need help and we could not leave the family alone. We hope Guangui would not be scared, nor nervous, for he is a brave boy. Original article written by Ban Aihua, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang Needs and Progress of Leprosy Care ProjectLeprosy Care Ministry of Shalom is a grass-root organization in Yunnan province. The organization has been providing services to lepers since 2000. Domestic and overseas volunteers were invited to join the services as medical aid, cares and help to the patients living in leprosy villages in Yunnan.
In 2012, the organization became partner with TFish. With the support of the foundation, Shalom’s services cover more people. The project villages have increased to 8 with 117 patients from 5 around Kunming.
Nayong Children without Care of Parents Our Children: There’s a special group of children living in the mountains of Nayong county of Guizhou province. They are called children without care of their parents. They live with their grandparents. It is quite normal that their fathers died and their mother left the village. The children make up about 10% of the local children. The youngest child was still an infant when her mother had left her. The eldest was about 4 when their parents had left them. They had to do housework or fieldwork while other children are beloved and cared. They had no one to care about them. Sometimes, they took out the photo of their mother from a drawer and touch her face on the photo. Or they went to their fathers’ tomb and spoke to the grave. They barely eat full and stay in shabby rooms. Some of them did not have a bed. Shortage of materials was not the main problem. They had to bear great mental pains. In the other children’s eyes, they have been abandoned by their mothers. They just hide themselves in the corner and keep silent. They are the targets being bullied. She loves drawing and nothing had been left. They do not want their grandparents to be sick. They could not afford to lose their only family. They would like to call mom, but no one would answer. Xi’an Alliance works to promote a spirit of volunteerism. Many student volunteers are trained to participate in public welfare activities and social work. The main office is in Xi’an, China. October 16, 2015 was a fine day with good weather. Chongyang Festival (a day to show respect to senior citizens in China) was coming. Doctor Yang, who is from the Chinese Medicine Center, came and did free services for the senior citizens. She is professional and patient.
Early in the morning, volunteers were busy arranging the site, moving tables, chairs, and organizing things. When the activity began, the senior citizens were waiting in line. Volunteers did their own jobs well. Some of them were doing information records, some were helping senior citizens, and some were guiding senior citizens to the line. Health workers were checking blood pressure and blood sugar for the senior citizens. Doctor Meng and Doctor Yang were taking their pulse and answering questions patiently. One of the senior citizens said happily, “This is very kind of you guys. You are doing good for our senior citizens. It’s difficult for some senior citizens to go to the hospital. This activity was a great help. Thank you! We hope there are more activities like this in the future.” We thank every volunteer who came for the activity today. We thank the health workers and doctors from the Chinese Medicine Center. We thank the staff from Youth 2nd Community. Thank you all for your love. We hope more and more people will participate in the activities, showing respect to senior citizens and helping them in more aspects. Original article written by Ping Wang, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang and Carolyn D. Grounded on core values of respect, love, and service to the elderly, the Xinyue Senior Center of Chongqing, China, promotes social work services for senior citizens and builds a harmonious living environment for them. The couples donned wedding outfits for the photo shoot. But these couples were not young—they were old men and women. Still, they smiled just like the younger ones. On October 22, the Senior Center hosted a wedding style photo shoot for the senior citizens. The social workers took photos for 9 senior couples. There were a lot of laughs and surprises during the activity. The social workers and stylists carefully helped the senior citizens do their make up and choose wedding dresses and suits. With suggestions from the photographer, they posed against scenic backdrops such as the bridge, trees, and artificial mountains. Granny Ma was moved to tears on the way to the photo shoot. The social workers had learned that she got married 50 years ago but had never taken wedding photos before. Now her dream came true. Granny Liu said she got married 61 years ago but had never taken wedding photos either. With a smile, Granny Liu explained that her husband is good at taking pictures and he used Photoshop to make their wedding photos. The wedding photo activity for the senior citizens was made possible with the support of Yi Beauty Photography Salon. This activity not only made the senior citizens’ dream come true, but it was also an opportunity to witness their happy love in front of the camera. Original article written by Ling Feng, translated by Maggie Li and edited by Yanyan Zhang and Carolyn D. |
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