An Yilan County charity has been given more than NT$1 million (US$31,644) of donations within a week to aid an elderly grass jelly vendor at Luodong Night Market (羅東夜市) after media outlets earlier this month reported his livelihood had been jepordized by a cancer diagnosis.
Wang Chin-fa (王金發), 79, supports his two mentally challenged children by himself. He invested his savings in a grass jelly business two years ago and worked from 7am to 11pm every day preparing the ingredients and selling at the night market, he said.
A photograph of an exhausted Wang sitting in front of his cart with his face buried in his hands went viral on the Internet and netizens launched a campaign to help boost Wang’s sales so that he could finish work earlier.
Photo: Chu Tse-wei, Taipei Times
Wang was taken to Luodong Bo-ai Hospital for a stomachache on June 6. He was later diagnosed with liver cancer.
His condition became critical on June 14, but later stabilized after treatment.
Moved by Wang’s story, some people visited Wang at the hospital and made donations, the hospital said, adding that he had four groups of strangers visit from Taichung and Taoyuan in a single day to lend him support.
Photo: Chu Tse-wei, Taipei Times
Yilan Social Affairs Department opened a charity account to take donations on July 15 and it received about NT$1.08 million within eight days. The donation account is to be open until Saturday, the department said.
Department director Huang Lung-kuan (黃龍冠) on Wednesday said it is one of a few cases that has collected more than NT$1 million in recent years, which he said shows society’s warmth and the influence of netizens.
Lin Su-yun (林素雲), wife of Yilan County Commissioner Lin Tsung-hsien (林聰賢), on Wednesday presented Wang with a novelty-sized check. Wang was moved to tears.
“I thank everyone [who supported me]. I will try to recover soon and keep selling my favorite grass jelly,” Wang said.
Wang’s wife, Lin Yu-ling (林玉齡), said they cannot repay the money the public has so kindly donated, but they would give free grass jelly in return.
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