Zhang Ming Yin
Zhang Ming Yin ("Bright Sunshine") is an 11-year-old boy from a farm family. The family, poor but able to survive, was hit by hard times about nine years ago when the grandfather developed cancer. Because most people in the countryside have no medical insurance, the family borrowed money to care for the grandfather. However, he died two years later, leaving Ming Yin's father with extensive medical bills. The family calculated it would take 45 years, barring any further catastrophes, to pay back all they owed. To deal with the debt, they decided to become a "floating family" - going where work could be found and sending money back home.
When the mother and father first brought their son to Beijing, they worked long hours. A GCI coordinator offered the father a job as the community gardener, and the mother went to work as a cleaning woman in the maintenance department. The mother also cleaned other people's houses; the father, too, held a second job as a "handyman" helping others in the community in any way he could. The family lived in a tiny space that held little more than a bunk bed where the boy and his mother and father slept.
In addition to facilitating the parents' employment, the GCI coordinator also noticed Ming Yin, a bright, considerate child, and helped him go to school. Because of China's One Child Policy, Min Ying (a second child) was not legally recognized by the Chinese government. He could not receive benefits such as an education because he was not the first child. However, because of GCI's sponsorship and arrangement with the Chinese government, Ming Yin received legal recognition and an ID card. He can be registered for school because he now has a birth certificate and can be legally recognized without his family being fined.
Ming Yin has always been a very good student and is now in the fifth grade. He told us how grateful he is to have his ID card and for the kindness of the community members. Ming Yin's teacher says he is a very considerate boy. During the school lunch program, he waits until the other students have what they want before he eats. His teacher was also touched when Ming Yin won an award last year and donated all the award money to aid a family whose father had suffered a very serious accident. Now he has a lot of good friends who give him good clothing and other items that he shares.
GCI works with this family to help them better themselves through job training and to help Ming Yin with his school fees. Ming Yin's family feels very privileged to have the support of the community that encouraged the parents to go to night school to learn to read and write. His mother reports that they are now able to read the newspaper and inform their friends of job opportunities.
Ming Yin has now been in Beijing for seven or eight years, but he has seen virtually nothing outside his own community. He dreams of visiting The Great Wall. His mother told us that both she and her husband are determined to continue to support their older daughter, who is in technical school, and they hope also to help their son get a college education. With GCI's assistance, this family can see their dreams fulfilled.