The Wolong Nature Reserve High School is located in Genda Township. Most students are Tibetan or Qiang minorities. The earthquake severely damaged the school, but fortunately no student was severely injured. Their teacher, Ms. Zhong, was pregnant. She lost her child due to exhaustion when helping the students flee away from the buildings on May 12th.
Since the homes of these students were even more severely damaged, many students were trapped to stay around the school. Mr. Yong Huang, another teacher, walked 10 miles each day to gather vegetables for the students. When talking to HELP members, he told us that the students were supposed to participate in the college-entrance examinations, the most important exams in these students’ lives, in the nearby city Chengdu soon. The catastrophe, however, destroyed the properties of many families and they could not support their kids for the examination trip anymore.
HELP supported the Woman Friend Magazine to sponsor all 45 students to make the trip. This included two-way transportation and room and board in Chengdu. Equally important was the mental state of the students. Many students were distracted and distressed, despite the fact that they would face the most important exams in their lives. HELP managed to find four volunteer psychiatrists from Chengdu, who conducted multiple relaxation sessions for the students. The students’ spirits were greatly uplifted and better focused before they entered in the exams.
Most of these students grew up in farmer families. Many never traveled for more than 15 miles away from home in their lives. Nevertheless, they built their dreams from what they knew. They liked Nike and Adidas; and a biggest dream was to possess a mp3. They knew McDonald and Kentucky Fried Chicken, and thought it would be really cool to have a date there in the future. They seldom tried internet, because the little internet they had in the school was incredibly slow. Their most important pages have not opened. They told us that they wanted to become policemen, businessmen, nurses, teachers, doctors, singers…. Now for many the future has changed because of the earthquake. Many knew their families would not be able to support their further education. Some started to think about becoming technicians, rather than doctors, in an effort to support their families. Some girls thought about marrying early after graduation of high school.
HELP, working with the Woman Friend Magazine, provided the psychological and material support needed for these students to go through the college-entrance exams. HELP understands that education is the best investment, and, in some sense, the best earthquake relief it can provide for these students. We will continue to follow the status of their exams and choices and provide further help when needed.
For more photos about the high school students who received support from HELP, please click here. |
