After donating the 44,400 yuan raised through his hiking fundraising campaign to impoverished elementary school students in Guizhou, "Cart-Pulling Brother" Yan Jiaman, a resident of Ruanjiatai Community on Hanshuiqiao Street in xZkou District, took a train back to Wuhan yesterday after more than 20 hours of travel. "My body is a bit tired, but my heart is very happy," said Yan Jiaman.
"Cart-Pulling Brother" Yan Jiaman (back row, first from right) with the students he supported
In the year before last, a set of photos of "Cart-Pulling Brother" Yan Jiaman from Hanzheng Street went viral online, attracting countless fans. Because Yan Jiaman is also often seen doing good deeds, being helpful and courageous, last year the Central Civilization Office awarded him the honorary certificate of "China's Good Samaritan."
"Now, both of my children have graduated from university, so there’s not much financial burden," said Yan Jiaman. But in the past, in order to raise tuition fees for his children, he had also faced many rejections. During the toughest times, he received help from others, which left him feeling forever grateful. Last year, when Yan Jiaman saw news reports about children from impoverished families in Guizhou struggling to attend school, he quietly made up his mind to find a way to help them. "Just consider it my way of giving back to society."
On February 28 of this year, 48-year-old Yan Jiaman set out on the road pulling his trusty "old partner"—a cart. He added a canopy to the cart, printed his photo and a message on it, calling on kind-hearted people to care for impoverished children. He planned to walk northward, soliciting donations from residents along the way. By August 30, Yan Jiaman had passed through 21 cities across three provinces—Hubei, Henan, and Hebei—including Xiaogan, Zhumadian, Luohe, Xuchang, Zhengzhou, Xingtai, Handan, Hengshui, Cangzhou, Tangshan, and Chengde. He wore out five pairs of sneakers, replaced three tires and two sets of rims, and ultimately raised 44,400 yuan in donations.
"This journey wasn’t easy," said Yan Jiaman. To save money, he ate steamed buns and pickles for almost every meal and slept on the cart. After summer arrived, there were too many mosquitoes along the way, so he figured out a pattern: generally, after three or four in the morning, there would be fewer mosquitoes, so he would sleep after four o’clock, continuing to walk during the first half of the night. When he reached towns, he would set up donation booths in crowded areas.
Although the conditions of the hiking fundraising were harsh, Yan Jiaman felt warmth: "Because along the way..."Thanks to media coverage, many people recognized him and offered enthusiastic help. Yan Jiaman recalled that a woman in her 40s in Cangzhou, Hebei, saw him eating moldy steamed buns and immediately brought over more than 20 meat-filled buns. In Xingtai, Hebei, a local charity team provided him with free meals and lodging, and helped him with fundraising efforts.
Earlier this month, after returning to Wuhan with the donations collected from kind-hearted people along the way, Yan Jiaman approached the Hanshuiqiao Subdistrict Office in xZkou District, hoping to support impoverished students. After coordination by the subdistrict office, Yan Jiaman specifically traveled to Jiuzhou Town, Huangping County, Guizhou Province, where he donated 500 yuan in cash to each of 48 local elementary school students, as well as 200 new backpacks, 100 pencil cases, 200 erasers, 200 lunchboxes, and several basketballs, soccer balls, badminton rackets, jump ropes, and more. "The 44,400 yuan was all spent on the children," said Yan Jiaman.
"This fundraising effort helped a lot of impoverished students, and it was very meaningful," Yan Jiaman told reporters yesterday. He plans to continue his cart-pulling journey, heading south to Guangzhou to raise more funds for impoverished students.