A 21-year-old man from Taichung who did not have a household registration or a national ID card until last year is now gaining work experience by day and attending school in the evenings, a local official said last week.
The man, surnamed Huang (黃), was discovered in May last year after he was kicked out of his father’s house that February.
He was living on the streets without an ID in the Beijing Borough (北京) of Taichung’s Beitun District (北屯).
Photo courtesy of Su Yi-ching
As his parents were not married and his mother was a migrant worker who left Taiwan, his father could not prove his parentage and therefore could not obtain household registration for him.
Without registration, Huang could not attend school or gain employment.
His case was reported to the Taichung Social Affairs Bureau by borough warden Su Yi-ching (蘇乙青), who assisted in placing Huang in a halfway house and applying for identification.
After DNA testing, the Taichung City Government was able to prove his parentage and Huang received an ID card in July last year.
Su saw Huang recently after 10 months apart and reported that he has been attending evening classes since September, reaching a second-grade education level with the ability to read everyday words.
He was given a smartphone by a benefactor, which he uses to access the Internet, create short videos and learn video editing, Su said.
However, his screentime is limited at the recommendation of his doctors and social workers, he added.
Huang loves product design and creating video content, and has requested a second-hand computer so he could continue learning new skills, Su said.
Huang has expressed his gratitude to everyone who has supported him financially, he added.
His daily work experience has taught him to create aroma stones, which are now for sale, and he has become a tour guide for visitors to the rehabilitation center where he lives, he added.
He also takes social skills classes during the day, Su said.
His social workers, teachers and mentors have all praised Huang for his kind and sweet nature, Su said.
His cognitive abilities and communication skills have improved greatly, and he now appears to be at the maturity level of a junior-high student, he added.
Huang keeps in contact with his elderly father, who still works hard, Su said, adding that Huang sent his father a red envelope over the Lunar New Year.
He can now take public transportation without assistance, having taken the bus to a fireworks display for the holiday, he said.
Huang also took a trip to Kaohsiung with his rehabilitation center, where he visited the Hanshin Department Store, he added.
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