Editor's Note

With the care of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and under the leadership of the All-China Women's Federation, the China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) launched the Spring Bud Project in 1989, to help impoverished girls return to school, and to promote girls' education in disadvantaged areas.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, in 2012, with the attention and concern of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core, and with the strong support of Peng Liyuan, special envoy of the Spring Bud Project for promoting girls' education, the project has conducted various activities to care for and support girls, and it has focused on girls' education, safety and health. During the past decade, the project has supported 1.76 million girls, and it has provided one-on-one companionship services and personalized psychological counseling to 133,400 girls. After they receive support from the project, the Spring Bud girls never forget to give back to society. With love and various actions, the girls have demonstrated the Spring Bud spirit of "unremitting self-improvement, striving for excellence, developing stronger virtues and pursuing better lives."

Today, we introduce a new section, Spring Bud Blooms, to share stories about Spring Bud girls who have grown up and become contributing members of society, and to encourage society to care for the development of girls. Hu Liang is one of them.

Hu Liang is awarded the title of China Children's Charity Award — Spring Bud Star.

"Hello, listeners. Welcome to Good Doctors in Heilongjiang, on Heilongjiang Traffic Radio," Hu Liang, the program's hostess, greets her listeners nightly at 7:30 p.m. She has been doing her utmost to connect her listeners with medical experts, and to ensure rural residents have access to high-quality medical resources.

Hu is from a village in Wangkui, a county in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. Hu had limited opportunities to embrace the outside world when she was young. Without the assistance of the Spring Bud Project, she wouldn't have become a radio hostess, and her voice wouldn't be heard daily by the public.

Hu liked singing and dancing, and as a young child she dreamed of demonstrating her artistic talent in the spotlight.

When she was a child, Hu had a chance meeting with an employee of Heilongjiang TV Station, who was collecting folk songs in Hu's hometown. After watching Hu's performance, the employee recommended that Hu participate in the entrance examination for a placement on the choir of Harbin Children's Palace.

Hu's father agreed to let her travel to Harbin, the provincial capital, to try out for the choir. She passed the exam, and she began studying singing there. She lived with her relatives in Harbin.

There was a major problem, however. Hu was not eligible to enroll in a local school. Hu often went to her cousin's school, squatted at the classroom door and listened to the teacher quietly. One day, a teacher noticed Hu at the door to the classroom, and she reported Hu's circumstances to the school authority.

Impressed by Hu's sincerity and eagerness to acquire knowledge, the school's headmaster submitted a report to the local education department, which granted Hu admission to the school.

Hu finally had the opportunity to study with her urban peers. However, the school's fees — not to mention her living expenses — were a huge financial burden for Hu's family.

At the age of 13, Hu became a recipient of the Spring Bud Project, thanks to a Heilongjiang Women's Federation cadre, who often bought vegetables at Hu's father's vegetable stall. The cadre introduced the project to him after she had learned of the family's economic situation.

With the cadre's help, Hu received financial assistance from the project, and that aid made it possible for Hu to complete her academic studies.

"At that time, I made up my mind to study hard, and to do my utmost to give back to society and pass on the love to others," she says.

In 2000, Hu was admitted to a university, where she studied music education. While she attended university, Hu allocated a portion of her income, from a part-time job, to support impoverished children.

When she participated in a Spring Bud Project activity, during the winter vacation of her third year at university, Hu met a girl from Wangkui. Hu decided to help and support that girl after she learned the girl was about to quit school, in part because her family had to pay for her mother's three surgeries. Hu supported that girl for eight years.

Since she became a hostess on Heilongjiang Radio Station, in 2005, Hu has spared no effort when helping the underprivileged, including senior citizens and children from migrant families.

Throughout the years, she has arranged for her listeners to visit elderly people and orphans in welfare houses, and she has encouraged seniors to participate in volunteer activities. She has also donated books, and stationery, to children of migrant families.

"When you are helpless, it is very important for others to reach out to you and give you hope," Hu says. She stresses the significance of the Spring Bud Project, and especially how it positively transformed her life. Therefore, she is committed to making the project widely known, and she is committed to rallying the strength of charity-minded individuals and organizations to help needy children realize their dreams.

Hu's participation in charitable activities has become a habit and pleasure, rather than a sense of mission and responsibility. Why? Hu says she has a keen understanding of the value of external assistance to those in need of social assistance.

Photos Supplied by CCTF

(Women of China English Monthly)