GCI Newsletter
- Transitioning Role in Henan Province
- Hotline Being Prepared in Beijing
- Publications Update
- Current Research
A Note from Dr. Luke
Welcome to our first issue of The Bridge, the official newsletter of Golden Courage International. We use this publication to keep readers informed of our latest accomplishments, help you get to know our children better, and share ways you can help.
We're glad you're here and welcome your comments. Please let us hear from you!
Transitioning Role in Henan Province
Our work began in Henan Province, where we first discovered the travesty of the AIDS pandemic related to blood transfusions. Here we met Jin Yong – the Chinese name of our namesake, Golden Courage.
Our role in Henan Province has changed dramatically from that first boarding school/emergency shelter we created on a shoestring in 2002 and 2003. The Chinese central government has now assumed responsibility of schooling the children and operating the emergency shelter.
We are transitioning into the role of evaluator. We have been invited to evaluate the operations under the new leadership and to help develop a model that can be replicated by other communities throughout the vast nation. We'll keep you informed as this new role matures.
Hotline Being Prepared in Beijing
We have already lost many of our children to China's floating population, a population of transient, migrant workers who move from labor job to labor job. These workers often send much of their earnings back to their families in central China. We know that children among this group are often forced into hard labor and prostitution, or live on the street.
Recent reports have estimated that at least 200 million people make up today's floating population in China. This is equal to two thirds of the U.S. population. Three million of these are in and around Beijing.
Our staff has been busy preparing our office in Beijing so our Hotline and Rescue Service can begin operation this spring. This service will provide children with a way out. One child at a time, Hotline and Rescue Service volunteers will be removing children from a life of despair to one filled with hope.
Publications Update
Our first peer-reviewed journal article can be found in Qualitative Health Research Journal. This article describes the lived experiences of persons living with AIDS contracted while selling blood in the early 1990s.
Lu, Y., Trout, S.K., Creswell, J.W., & Lu, K. (2005). The needs of AIDS-infected individuals in rural China.Qualitative Health Research, 15(9), 1149-1163. To order your copy, visit www.ualberta.ca/~qhr/.
An extensive treatment of Phase I of the research that led to the development of GCI can be found in Dr. Luke's doctoral dissertation. This publication will be available soon through Dissertation Abstracts International.
Current Research
Our writing teams continue to prepare articles for peer-reviewed publication. As we near the completion of reporting from our first phase of data collection, we continue to accumulate new data that will allow us to continue studying the social phenomena in which our children live.