She sees a days-old baby sick and dying near her home. The girl
child has an infection because her umbilical hasn't been cut
properly. She takes her home, consults a doctor and nurses it back
to health.
She then decides to adopt her. Her family objects vehemently,
for she already has adopted four children. But she wins the battle
in the end.
That's Wang Yongxian, all of 58 years old. She lives in Lixi
Town in Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture of Chongqing
Municipality.
That day in 1995 was the beginning of her extraordinary journey.
In just over a decade, she has become a household name in the
municipality.
Wang's readiness to help the poor and needy, especially
children, made the Chongqing Municipal Women's Federation honor her
as "One of the Top 10 Outstanding Mothers in Chongqing" last
year.
Federation chief Zhu Ren says the honors were for mothers who
had overcome great difficulties to support their families or help
others.
"Since that day in 1995, 'Mother Wang' has adopted seven orphans
and donated more than 100,000 yuan ($12,821) to help 350 poor
children complete their studies," Zhu says.
But Wang doesn't treat all her adopted children equally, for she
loves Qiu Yongzhen the most. The reason: Qiu's legs are
disabled.
Until five years ago, Qiu used to beg for a living, something
Wang hated. So she bought Qiu a machine to repair shoes after
adopting her. She even got someone to teach her how to operate the
machine.
Qiu now not only earns her living with dignity, but also has
saved some money in the bank.
"Mother Wang treats me like her own daughter. She taught me how
to earn my bread with dignity, and even saved my life," Qiu
says.
On August 21, 2004, a flash flood inundated Lixi. Realizing that
Qiu was alone in her workshop in the market with nobody around to
help her, Wang jumped into the raging floodwaters to carry her to
safety.
"Mother Wang saved me in the nick of time otherwise I would have
been swept away in flood," Qiu says.
Five of the seven children Wang has adopted can support
themselves; two are in primary school.
There seems to be no end to Wang's philanthropic zeal. Two years
ago, a child in Lixi was denied admission to the local primary
school because he had a cleft lip. Wang paid for the surgery to
rectify the boy's biological deformity and ensured that he was
admitted to school.
Free dormitory
Wang runs a big restaurant, and converted three of her rooms
into a free dormitory for poor students from outside town 10 years
ago.
"The kind soul treats jobless youths with equal love and care"
says Zhu. She has created more than 60 jobs for them.
Wang is a good tailor, too, and has taught more than 180 youths
the art of needlework, helping them to earn a living.
But why does she do all this? The last word comes from Wang: "I
know the hardships a poor person has to go through because I was a
poor young girl myself. Since I'm better off today, I consider it
my duty to help the needy."
(China Daily January 18, 2007)
