A Bi Gui Yuan School charity performance where students donated books instead of buying tickets has transformed local schooling in the area. HAND has created a rotating library and monitoring system so that 15 schools share the books donated and see something more of the world.

HAND funded an operation for Cheng Bingda on his cleft lip. Deformity in this area brings ostracism even more so than in the WEST. Hopefully he will now have the chance to lead a normal life.

Wu Xiao Zheng underwent a second operation in order to remove the finger infected with elephantitus. Thankfully, this time everything went smoothly. She is now able to work and will later be able to consider marriage. Neither of these things would have been possible without the two operations HAND funded.

Thanks to the fund raising efforts of Sarah Weir from Yorkshire we were able to take across with us our biggest ever shipment of medicine.

This is Sha Fudou, the husband of the lady who passed away after a man masquerading as a doctor in the area extracted her gall bladder. While we wished for the “doctor” to stop we realise that he comes from an area with a desperately low level of education. His father was also known as a local “doctor” despite, like his son, having had no formal training. Our desire for him was to cease without facing a prolonged period of imprisonment.

Local authorities were slow to act so we had to ask Sha Fudou to file a complaint. This was extremely brave of him even though his wife had died as the local “doctor” is a personal friend of his and they see one another every day as they work on the same construction site.

We accompanied him to the police station an hour’s drive down the mountain and are very happy to say that police confiscated the “doctor’s” medical equipment and are currently deciding on an appropriate level of compensation. It has been agreed by the authorities and the local community to HAND’s satisfaction, that Jiu San Yi, the local “doctor”, will not face imprisonment.

Du Jian Ye suffered a terrible fall when working her family’s land eight years ago. Her leg had been horribly broken and caused her constant pain as she continued to work the same mountainous land, only with a staff for support. An operation that HAND funded in November of 2007 has transformed her life.

Twelve year old Li Tsen Li has relatively mild cerebral palsy. With the Zimmer frame that we were purchased for her she is not only able to move independently around her home but, we hope also around school – somewhere she had never been. Two students from Bi Gui Yuan School took her to and from school during the time we were in Zhiziluo, staying with Li Tsen Li throughout the duration of the school day in order to help her adjust and in order for the local children to begin breaking down some of the myths they had held surrounding people with such conditions; i.e. that they are contagious and to be avoided. The local headmaster has promised us that he will do everything in his power to accommodate Li and to ensure that she makes it to school everyday.

We continued the work performed by students during a previous visit giving out soap and engaging in hygiene classes. We have agreed to send 100 bars of soap every month to one local primary school. We hope that we can extend this agreement to other schools in the near future.

Li Funa underwent a second biopsy on the lumps in her neck. We are delighted to say that the test proved negative, the pressure has been relieved from important veins and arteries and she is back with her family.