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Foundation seeks to help children during New Year

With Lunar New Year just two weeks away, some people may be planning to reward themselves with a new camera, a new cellphone or a big, fancy meal, while others may read health tips on how to avoid gaining too many kilos during the New Year's Eve feast.

However, for a small group of children, their only hope is to have a meal that consists of more than rice, soy sauce and pickled cucumbers, the Child Welfare League Foundation said at a press conference yesterday.

The foundation, which employs about a hundred social workers, provides assistance to more than 2,000 disadvantaged families every year.

Yesterday, it called on the public to donate to less fortunate families to give their children a chance to enjoy "a meal with fish or meat and [to receive] a red envelope on New Years Eve."

"Ninety-four percent of disadvantaged families feel the pressure at Lunar New Year, with 84.4 percent saying that the greatest pressure stems from having no money to purchase [food and clothes] for the festivities," said Hsieh Hsin-ling (謝欣伶), a social worker at the foundation.

More than 30 percent of such families have to dodge debt collectors during New Year, she said, adding that the red envelopes received by children in those families contain on average NT$193 -- "less than what most kids [from better-off families] receive every week," she said.

During the press conference, Hsieh told the story of 11-year-old Wei, who lives with his grandmother.

"Many of Wei's meals are provided by the foundation," Hsieh said. "On most days, the grandmother and grandson share a NT$50 lunch box -- Wei eats first and grandma eats what is left."

Given the contrast between what children from well-off families receive and what children in need get, many less-fortunate children tell us they do not want to celebrate the New Year, Hsieh said.

"Wei's grandmother only wishes for a filling meal on New Years Eve, but she would like Wei to have a New Year he can enjoy," she said. "It wouldn't take much for the public to make that dream come true."

Readers interested in helping can log on at www.children.org.tw or call 02-2550-5959, ext. 1.
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