Philanthropy is the act of being a humanitarian and charitable towards the others by improving their life in any way possible. If you look up the meaning of charity on Google then you will find basically the same explanation: "A system of giving money, food, or help free to those who are in need because they are ill, poor, or have no home, or any organization that has the purpose of providing money or helping in this way." Or how about this one: "A charity is an organization which raises money in order to help people who are sick or very poor, or who have a disability."
Charity is actually much more than just raising money to help the needy. You can divide charity in 2 main parts and that is the financial part which is based on donating money or supplies to support the helpless. Another part is to give your time as a volunteer to help others in a more social human way. To give your time and have a loving heart towards people can be called charity in all its simplicity and purity and is the basic foundation of helping others.
What is a project?
In "A Heart For China" most of our projects are not planned as it goes with many other charities. We adapt to a situation and see where help is needed. First we make contact with a school, nursing home or shelter to find out if they welcome volunteers and how we can fit in their schedule on weekends or even weekdays. Once we visit a place on a very regular basis it becomes a project with a longterm commitment. Volunteers come together 3-4 times a month and visit places that are scheduled to go to. As a vounteer organisation we concentrate on giving our love and care to the elderly or children with a disability.
Although we are not a charity which fundraises much, sometimes we commit to a cause to gather donations. These causes are temporary projects which are situated in China and related to Chinese elderly or children. In our 5 years existence "A Heart For China" once commited itself to fundraise for a foreign baby with respiratory problems. Once a while we ask for donations to support our events to buy necessary daily things like food, fruit and milk.
Our projects are easy and can be supported by everyone. They are made available for students, families with children or anyone who like to contribute as a volunteer. For families it is also a good way to teach their children values like respect for others and life, friendship, kindness, gratitude, self-giving and love. And by sharing that happiness and kindness to others they will also receive more self-appreciation and say "thank you" to themselves for all the things they have done but taken for granted. That part is very important for their self-esteem because it influences people's choices and decisions, and it is an individual's subjective evaluation of their own worth.
We have several projects with a longterm commitment:
Bao Xin Project:
Shenzhen Baoan District Social Welfare Center is mainly responsible for the resettlement of abandoned babies (children) and orphans in the district, and the provision of maintenance, medical, rehabilitation, and education services for residents.
Green Project:
From time to time we commit ourselves to collect trash in parks or roads and support other organisations, specialized in eco and recycling, by joining them in their activites.
Huayang Project:
Shenzhen Huayang Special Child Rehabilitation Center is a professional registered nonprofit organization which provides rehabilitation, education and service for autistic and disabled children.
Min Ai Project:
Shenzhen Min Ai Disabled Children’s Welfare Center (NGO) is a civilian-run and government-supervised civil welfare organization. The center is a special school for autistic children, cerebral palsy children and other children who are physically and mentally disabled.
Outlaw Bullying Project:
We take the responsibility to introduce anti-bullying in schools, and create a group of responsible kids so that they can reduce the number of bullying in that school.
Renda Project:
Renda Nursing Home for Elderly is a nonprofit social welfare organization. It provides pension, health and medical care, nursing and recreation services. It has beautiful natural landscap, a good environment and has fields and gardens for growing vegetables and fruits.
Tian Tian Project:
Shenzhen Tiantian Rehabilitation Center for children with a hearing disability adopts the training model that actively participates in the rehabilitation knowledge training, activities of relevant institutions in provinces and cities, and invites authoritative experts to train teachers for a long time to learn the latest education concepts and rehabilitation methods to improve professional standards.
Covid-19 Project:
When the coronavirus outbreak started to get serious in January 2020 we began with a fundraiser and several positive actions to inspire people and children. Sometimes it is important just to take the initiative.
Some projects are deeper explained in our project pages named Covid-19 and Outlaw Bullying.
"A Heart For China" welcomes everyone who like to give their time and make someone else happy or help them in any way they can. The simplicity and purity of charity is to give your time to others, time that never can be reclaimed. Spending several hours of your time is equally important as giving financial or material donations.