Philanthropist vegetable vendor Chen Shu-chu (陳樹菊) yesterday donated NT$15 million (US$537,095) to the Taitung County Government to set up a fund to provide financial assistance to pregnant women to help them give birth safely.
The fund would help pregnant women who cannot afford hospital care get access to antenatal examinations and offer assistance to children who lost their mothers during childbirth until the age of 12, the Taitung government said.
Taitung Department of Social Welfare Director Chen Shu-lan (陳淑蘭) said that Chen Shu-chu, who retired in early 2018, has donated a life insurance policy worth NT$15 million to set up the fund.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
Chen Shu-chu, who is in her 70s and had sold vegetables from her family’s market stall for more than half a century, wanted the funds to be used to commemorate her mother, who died during childbirth when Chen Shu-chu was in elementary school, Chen Shu-lan said.
Her family was poor at the time and could not afford hospital care for her mother, Chen Shu-lan said.
The county government expressed gratitude for the donation, saying that the fund would help lower risks women face during childbirth and enhance their welfare.
The fund would also provide scholarships to children who lose their mothers during childbirth, it said.
At the donation ceremony, Chen Shu-chu said that she had saved income from her family’s vegetable stall for more than five decades before retiring, so it was “natural” that she would do something to help her community in return.
“For me, the best way to live my life is to complete what I want to do,” she said. “As I am grateful to my mother for giving birth to me, but regret that she lost her life while in labor, I just want to help pregnant women who need financial support to make sure they are safe while giving birth.”
Chen Shu-chu has become famous for her philanthropy over the past few years.
In 2018, she donated two life insurance policies worth a total of NT$16 million to Taitung MacKay Memorial Hospital and Taitung Christian Hospital to set up two cancer treatment funds for the benefit of people in need.
When she retired, Chen Shu-chu said that she had a home and some savings, which would be enough for her to support herself for the rest of her life.
She is determined to continue providing as much help as she can to others, she said at the time.
In 2012, Chen Shu-chu was named one of six winners of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for helping poor people.
She donated the US$50,000 cash prize to Taitung Mackay Memorial Hospital.
In 2010, she was included in Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people for contributing more than NT$10 million to charitable causes, including a donation to build a library at Taitung’s Ren-Ai Elementary School, her alma mater, and another donation to sponsor poor children.
In the same year, she was also named one of 48 heroes of philanthropy by Forbes Asia.
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