Charity gives China's abandoned, disabled children a second chance
SecondCharity's shared apartments offer China's abandoned, special-needs children a new beginning, writesVivian Chiu
Hunan native Li Shi was born with cerebral palsy. His father had to take on a number of jobs to raise him, but became seriously ill and died. Unable to support Li, his widowed mother abandoned him in the city when he was five years old.
For several months, the boy survived by running with a gang of beggars in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, until a concerned stranger took him to an orphanage, the Changsha Welfare Centre.
In 1997, he was finally placed in the care of International China Concern (ICC), and now lives semi-independently in a home run by the group. Now 25, he sells newspapers and has a cleaning job in the afternoons. He even preaches at a local church and dreams of entering the seminary.
Li's experience is just one of several of the organisation's success stories.
The ICC, founded in 1993, works with the mainland government to provide care services for disabled children who have been cast out by their families. Through its work over the past two decades, the Christian organisation has shown how disabled children, with proper care and guidance, can develop their potential and integrate into society.
Today, ICC has eight offices worldwide, which raise funds for projects, and recruit sponsors and volunteers with a passion to serve in China.