Donated to:
Jianping He (何建平)
$280 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
Like many in my village, I did not own my first set of clothing until I was five years old. My family had been too poor to buy cloth. My family rents fields from others, and my father works a second job as a manual laborer downtown. My family must pay tuition for my brother and me – I am in middle school and my brother is in elementary school. During one tough time, I dropped out of class for a semester because my family couldn’t afford my tuition fee. Originally, I lived in a remote rural area, from where children would walk five hours to get to school since public transportation was not available. My old home was about 5 miles away from my current school. Everyday, I had to walk for an hour and a half to get to school. Because my parents wanted my brother and me to be closer to school, we decided to move, and found a nice neighbor willing to rent some farmland out. Unfortunately, the weather was very bad. When there was a storm, my family would have nothing to eat for several ...
Shangwen Zhang (张尚文)
$10 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
My family of four has struggled with economic hardships for years. We only own a small lot of land. Due to the poor health conditions of my mother, most of the farmwork falls on the shoulders of my father. My younger sister and I help out on the weekends when we return home from boarding at school. After the crops have been harvested, my father travels to a nearby city to earn a minimal income through hard labor to help the family get by. I often cry at night under the covers because I am torn between wanting to attend school and also wanting my father to not have to work so hard. I hope to finish school so that I can help my family out of poverty. (Translated from Shangwen’s autobiographical sketch)
Chao Xu (徐超)
$280 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
Six years ago, my father mysteriously disappeared, leaving my mother to raise my sister and me by herself. Although my family owns a small parcel of land, my mother’s health conditions prevent her from actually laboring in the fields. To make ends meet, my family rents out our fields (and even parts of our home) to other farmers. Because my mother works in the city to earn an income for the family, I currently live with my grandmother. I do not see my mother except during the wintertime or under special circumstances. My younger sister lives with an uncle and currently attends elementary school. (Translated from Chao's autobiographical sketch)
Yincong Fan (范银聪)
$250 of $250 donated
Sichuan, China
My parents did not receive much education, and only my father can be considered semi-literate. Given their background, my parents both understand the importance of education and hope that one day, their children will be able to stand proudly in society. When I was in third grade, a major thunderstorm damaged the roof of my house. The next day, my uncle came to help fix the roof, but unfortunately, slipped and fell six meters to the ground. After being examined at the hospital, the doctors deemed that immediate surgery would be necessary to save my uncle’s life. In despair, I had to discontinue my education to help pay for my uncle’s medical expenses. A year later, my father intended for me to return to finish elementary school. However, my mother was diagnosed with lithiasis and needed me to stay home to help out with farm work. I would often cry when seeing other children going to school while I had to stay home. But I never allowed my tears to be seen by my parents because I k...
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