[Deer Antler Project]Donate Time, Nurture Children’s Dreams

Money isn’t the focus — we want your “time”! Whether they’re children from remote areas or those without parental care, besides material donations, what they truly need more is love and companionship. The Deer Antler Project, through a digital platform, invites you to donate your time, accompany children with love as they grow, and help their dreams flourish.

Project Description:
If you have 2 free hours on a Saturday in the near future, please donate them to us. Your 2 hours will become a learning opportunity and a dream-filled hope for a child from a remote area or without parental care for an entire year.

[Who Are We?]
We are Qihe, a digital advertising agency. We are a group of planners, a bunch of creatives — some happen to be photographers, some storytellers, some easily moved. We are also children with parents, and even parents ourselves. We have dreams, and we’re fortunate enough to have the ability to realize them, so we understand the longing to achieve one’s dreams. “Connecting the beauty of the world” is our brand spirit, so whenever there’s a chance, we’ll do our best — even if it’s just a little — hoping to use our influence to spread love and goodness infinitely.

[Why Did We Start?]
Because of a project requirement, we visited the Hualien Indigenous Children’s Home. Although the project wasn’t ultimately carried out, after several actual visits, we were struck by the realization that for these children, the happiness and fulfillment from material donations paled greatly compared to just a few hours of accompanying them to class or playing games. Through companionship, the children could regain the love and warmth they had lost from adults, and receive more positive energy. The home’s staff explained that behind every child here lies a heartbreaking story — yet seeing their innocent faces made it hard to imagine, and even more heart-wrenching.
During our first visit, we shared a meal with the children, watched them practice dancing, and though we spent less than half a day together, when it came time to leave, the children were already asking reluctantly, “Will you big brothers and sisters come back?” None of us had the courage to refuse, but no one dared guarantee it either — all we could do was smile and nod in response.

We didn’t want to let the children down again — that’s why we started.

It might be a bit heavy for one person to commit to 365 days of companionship, but if we gather 120 minutes from many people, we can create a whole year of happiness for these children. Isn’t that much easier? That’s how we came up with the concept of “donating time.” We decided to create a website to collect time, plan a full year of joyful lessons for the children, or share images and stories to let them see the world outside, so they won’t give up hope, believe they are worthy of being loved, and eventually have the chance to pursue their own dreams.

[What Is the Deer Antler Project?]
The antlers on a deer’s head branch out and grow over time, symbolizing the maturation of a fawn and serving as a courageous emblem of self-protection. Antlers have the ability to regenerate, continuously growing upward and branching out — a unique and beautiful identifier for each young deer. The Deer Antler Project hopes that through continuous companionship and care, children who are without parental support or resources can also grow up happily in love, bravely realize their dreams, and grow their own beautiful and unique antlers.

The Deer Antler Project is not a one-time event targeted at a specific organization, but rather a concept and a digital fundraising platform. Its goal is to integrate small fragments of effort into longer, deeper care and companionship for those in need. In 2014, the Deer Antler Project came to the “Hualien Indigenous Children’s Home,” aiming to provide a year-long companionship plan. This is only the first stop of the Deer Antler Project. With everyone’s selfless participation, we hope this project will continue year after year, benefiting more organizations and more children, allowing love to spread infinitely through sharing.

[How Can You Help?]

Visit the Deer Antler Project (link) website, choose a Saturday morning or afternoon, then take a scenic train ride to Xincheng, Hualien. Spend 2 hours teaching the children a class — whether it’s drawing, cooking, or arts and crafts — you’ll become a little teacher on the Happy Class Schedule.

Go to the Deer Antler Project (link) website, upload photos of your hometown or tourist spots, and introduce the little stories behind them with text, so the children on the other side of the screen can also see the wonders and beauty of the world through the internet.

Due to limited funding at the Hualien Indigenous Children’s Home, all transportation costs, materials, or props needed for classes must be covered by the volunteer teachers themselves. However, the director warmly welcomes volunteers to stay for lunch with the children after class. To avoid putting a burden on the home, we ask those who wish to support the Deer Antler Project to, when donating their time, also sponsor NT$100 to cover the cost of lunch on the day of the class. If you really can’t go in person but still want to do something for the children, you’re welcome to sponsor the meal and share a story with the children via text and images on the Deer Antler Project website.

Deer Antler Project - Donate Time to Accompany: http://ideer.iprefer.com.tw/
FlyingV Meal Sponsorship Project: http://www.flyingv.cc/project/2217