Qu Ling Zhu

This little girl is Qu Ling Zhu. Her parents have left home, and she lives with her grandparents. They have spent a lot of money to help her with her face and yet nothing has helped. She is a good student and is in grade 4. She is 13 years old. She is getting Blessing Hands tuition, but I hope she can be helped with her physical problem. Does anyone have any ideas. 

Alice's school - Pu Yi Primary School

In this picture eleven Blessing Hands children are holding their tuition envelopes. Alice is the teacher. She was my translator and assistant during summer English camp. The picture was taken on Sports Day so everyone is dressed in sports clothes.

On the first row from left to right are Li Weizhi, Wei Hairou, Li Lin, Li Qin. On the second row from left to right stand Ge Dan, Huang Raoming (the boy that Alice later asked me to add to the list), Deng Youcai, Luo Qinfan, Wei Yunlan, Huang Pinzhi ,and Li Zhen.

Another Blessing Hands child - Mo Zonggui.

Andy Liang's School - Xing Ping Primary School

These ten Blessing Hands children are Mo Xiangling, Huang Zhuqing, Huang Jianxui, Lu Mingyi, Fei Xiuping, Qu Lingzhu, Yu Tianhua, Xu Changlong, Huang Yuli, and Mo Zhonggui. Their teacher was my assitant last summer. His name is Andy Liang, and the school is Xing Ping Primary School. 

Dear Blessing Hands,
Thank you very much for your helping. It's so nice to hear from you. I'm Yang Naiqi. I'm standing grade three in Yangdi Primary School. There are four persons in my family, grandpa, father, mother, and me. I 'm very hard to learn. I love learning. Thank you very much.

Love from
Yang Naiqi 

Dear Blessing Hand,
I'm glad hear you. At first I am writing this letter to thank you. You can hand in studying expenses for me and let me can go to school.

And then I introduce myself. My name is Yang Min Jie. I'm a boy ten ages. I'm studying grade four in Yangdi Primary School. I am monitor in class. I'm studying very hard and like to help other students too. Also like to you help people need help people. I would also like to thank you for interesting discussion with me, which I don't over you.

About my family. My family very poor. My grandpa is with me. The last 

Dear Blessing Hands,
I'm glad hear you. Thank you very much for your helping. I'm Mao Shujie. I'm eleven. Im standing grade five in Yangdi Primary School. There are four persons in my family. My father, my mother, my little brother, and I (This means that she is a girl since families that have a first born girl can have a second child.). My village is at remote place where is very poor. I love learning and very hard to learn. I hope looking forward to your early visit to China and meet you. I hope you always remember me also.

I will always remember you kinding. Thank you very much again. Best wish for you.

Love from
Mao Shujie

Blessing Hands.
I study in grade three in trimary school of Feng Nu Zhai.
My name is Wang Xue Ying. My parents haven't stayed at home since three years ago. I had only sixty Yuan Renminbi ($7.50 US) to take the tuition. Thank you for help.

Wang Xue Ying 

Li Qin

This is Li Qin, one of Alice's students who is holding up her tuition gift envelope. You can see part of her school in the background. 

Blessing Hands

Good news. As of November 21, 2005 sponsors have been found for all but 15 of the original children whose names were given to me in August. I am starting to get pictures and thank you letters back now. I will pass some of the letters on to supporters as soon as I can get them downloaded. I am having trouble accessing the page where Mrs. Wei has posted them on the net.

I hope to go back to Yangshuo in March, 2006 to dedicate 100 wheelchairs that Morehead Sister Cities has given to Yangshuo. We are still raising the money for the wheelchairs at $60 a chair. I trust that they will be paid for by March. I hope I will get to visit the schools while I am there and get to see the children in their classrooms. Is anyone interested in going with me? Just let me know.

Blessings,
Betty Cutts

These thank you letters came from one primary school in Yangshuo County. The first is from the teacher.

Blessing Hands,
Thank you very much for your enthusiastic help for our students. Your offer will provide them a good opportunity to joy school. They are really lucky.

Shall I introduce something about our school, which is located at the foot of a small hill. There are less than a hundred students and eight teachers in our school. Though the school campus is very narrow the students love the school life very much. All the student are come from the countryside. Their families are not so rich. The boys and girls are really innocent and lovely. We hope (Continued below) 

There are more and more people care about them. As a teacher of course we have to try our best to teach them well. Let them have a good future.

Let's hand in hand the children all across the land have a peaceful life far away from famine. far away from poor.

From
Bai Sha

Cha Hua Qiao Primary School

Blessing Hands,

Thank you very much for your help. I'm so lucky and happy to receive your letter. I must study hard and learn more things.

There are only two people in my family, my grandma and I. My father died years ago. My mother left us alone. So my family is very poor.

From
Gan Shuifeng


Cha Hua Qiao Primary School

Blessing Hands,

I'm a primary school student. I'm 11 year old. I was born in a small villiage. my family is very poor. thank you for your help. You are so kind to help us. My family and I feel warmly. Best wishes for you. I'll study well.

From
Mo Huorong

Cha Hua Qiao Primary School

Alice Fen

This letter came recently from my assistant teacher last summer. I was glad to get her news about the children receiving their tuition and of course added the child Huang Raoming to our Blessing Hands list. I also sent her some pictures to share with the children. It is so rewarding to know that these children are being helped. What a difference it will make in their lives. I only edited Alice's letter a little, so what you read is hers.

Dear Betty,

How are you going? It is long times that you went home. I miss you very much. Ha ha ~~maybe I should introduce myself at first. I am Alice, who is from Yangshuo Guilin China. We met each other at this summer holiday; do you still remember the English Summer Camp for teacher? aha hhha ~~ you've got it, yeah?
I miss the days we spent together. They were the happiest day I’ve got this summer. I still remember your big smile; it is so clearly in my mind.
My students are very lucky that they can get your help. It is very nice of you. One of them, whose name is LI XING, told to me "Alice, I want to see the photo of the warm heart." but I just said sorry to her, because I missed the photo we took together.

There are 10 children got your help. But, at last, I must say "sorry" to you, I miss the one, who really needs your help. His name is HUANG RAOMING. Now maybe, Ms. Wei talk to you about him. He is 11 years old and in Grade 4. He is a very naught boy, sometimes I am very angry with him. His parents divided for a long time; I don't know the correct time. He lives with his grandma (his mum's mum).

Thank you so much, Betty. Wish you happy everyday. Don’ t forget I am Alice.

Thank you letters have come.

The first thank you letters have come from the children in one class. They all said they would study hard. Their teacher is Alice Zhang Fenfen who teaches at Puyi Primary School. 

This child will be receiving the tuition soon.

The envelopes are getting printed with the children's names and the amount in each envelope. Gloria Wei sent this example to me today. The children should start getting them soon. I am excited.

Great News! As of today, September 23rd, enough money has come in for all but 45 of the rural children whose names were given to me by their teachers. I am so glad that people have seen the need and risen up to help. Surely the rest of the children will find sponsors. I am planning to wire the money I have presently to Malan Cai next week. Gloria Wei from the Education Department has sent me a picture of our seal showing two hands shaking under the words Blessing Hands in English. The children will at least learn those two English words when they see our seal.

Be a blessing with Blessing Hands.

BLESSING HANDS

While I was teaching in a summer English camp in Yangshuo County, Guangxi, China, I asked the director of the camp to ask the primary and middle school teachers in our classes to make lists of the children in their classes and schools who needed tuition help to continue in school. The teachers turned in the names of 269 children.

Later I was able, with the help of the Education Department of Yangshuo Schools, to visit five of the teachers at their schools in the countryside. The teachers had needy students come to the school to meet me and also took me to visit the homes of needy students. The following pictures are of those students and schools.

Orphaned Chinese children like these need tuition help. These sisters depend on their grandmother for their support. I have committed myself to help 155 of these children for one year with tuition. As I looked through the name lists, I chose mostly primary school children and some middle school children, who are taught by my teaching assistants, who were middle school teachers.

I opened an account in the Bank of China and put the funds in the care of Malan Cai, who was my Chinese teacher when she was a visiting scholar here. Two other of my Chinese friends who were students at our local college, Xuqi Wen and Yi Ying Li (Walson), also agreed to help me help the children in the countryside. Together we talked about forming a charity to help the children, but we found that establishing a charity in cooperation with a foreigner in China is very difficult.

Will these children be able to finish school once they start?

I am still exploring how to fund the tuition program as a charity or to pass the funds through an established charity. For now I am calling the program Blessing Hands, since I feel that the children need extended hands reaching out with blessings to help them. It is really God's hand of blessing in me that I am extending, but other people may just want to help because they feel compassion also.

I have discussed the charity and its heart with the Education Department and the state charity people within the Yangshuo government. They are willing to work with anyone who will extend aid to the children in the countryside. It is normal for individuals to personally give aid to the children or even to schools there, so they approve of what I want to do and are willing to help me personally give this money as need is found.

Charles, one of my teacher/students, welcomed me to his school in the coutnryside. He rides a motorcycle to school over dirt roads.

Charles and I are in the teachers' office. He came at 5:00 a.m. to clean up this room for us visitors.

The headmaster is showing us the books used to teach English in his school.

All of China loves ping-pong. This concrete table is used for ping-pong.

This is a kindergarten room.

This classroom shows the need that the rural schools experience everyday. Although I was delighted to help the 140 children, the plight of the other 119 children that I did not fund began to appear before me when I woke up in the morning. I began to think of friends and relatives that I thought might also want to help them. I made a little presentation at my church and several people gave me money that would support five children for one semester.

I opened a bank account in my local bank in the name of Blessing Hands to keep that money dedicated to its intended children. I can send the tuition money to China by Western Union. That is why I have made this blog presentation. I am hoping to raise enough money to help the rest of the 114 children.

I was introduced to this grandmother who is raising her two orphaned grandchildren. She came in from working in the fields to meet me.

This is Mo Renjiao. She is an orphan supported by her grandmother who is at least 82. She is an excellent student. She will soon be old enough to be a middle school student. Country children between the ages of 12 and 14 usually must become boarding students to continue in middle school. That is a dangerous point when children often miss out on further education, since they cannot afford the added expense of living away from home and also tuition.

After they pass a special test at age 14 they can go on to middle high school until age 18, but middle high school tuition is not government subsidized at all. Since poor students, who are excellent students, have to depend on sponsors willing to support them in school, children over 14 really face a divide that determines their future lives. Many drop out to enter the labor force and support their families. Passing the test to get into college still does not solve their problems since college fees, though low, are often out of reach for them and their families.

Mo's grandmother was such a tiny lady. I asked her if I could buy this Chinese stool from her. She insisted on giving it to me. I remember her devotion to her grandchildren everytime I see the stool in my home. It fitted easily into my suitcase. Visitors are always offered these stools for seating when visiting a Chinese rural home. They are very sturdy, and this one looked very old.

These children in the village near Charles' school were playing a board game like chess except with Chinese playing pieces. Beside me is Jessica, a middle school teacher who came along with us the first day.

The mountains in Yangshuo County are the very ones we see in Chinese watercolor paintings. They really do disappear into the clouds in sharp peaks. The Chinese appreciate rocks shaped in strange forms, and these mountains are the subject of many poems.

This village is called the Stone Village because a lot of the houses are made of stone. Tourists come to see this village during cooler weather.

This is a kitchen in one of the houses in the Stone Village. Rice is the main crop and food of these village people.

This grandfather is supporting his two granddaughters. They do have electricity in Stone Village, but it often does not work.

One of the teachers is translating for me. I do so wish that I could speak Chinese. I am taking Chinese lessons, but it is slow going.

This little girl had walked an hour with her father to come and ask for help. Her mother is very sick, and they have no money to get medical care or medicine for her. She cannot get out of bed. I gave the family as much as I was advised to give at the present time. You can see her classroom in the background.