Ten Years: Start from Scratch and Grow Bigger

- presented on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of Li San Yim Charitable Foundation

For ten years, we have made our way forward against twists and turns.

For ten years, we have dedicated ourselves to the charity of universal love.

Charity is a sign of civilizations. The charitable cause is a glorious and noble one that is full of humanistic care. Since established in 2007, Li San Yim Charitable Foundation has been inheriting its core value of 'publicizing humanitarian sprits, supporting social charities and public undertakings and promoting social harmony and development'. By irrigating 'the flower of charity' and illuminating the way ahead with love, it has made a great contribution to social benefits.

The Foundation's donations to charities have totaled more than RMB 78.1162 million. It has given donations to totally 11,662 persons (times) in its poverty relief efforts and been awarded 'National Advanced Social Organization' and National 5A Foundation. Mr. Li San Yim, the founder of the Foundation, was given the 'Chinese Charity Award' and the title of 'The Most Charitable Individual Donator of China'.

This is an excellent performance sheet that embodies love and sweat. This is an attachment to people's livelihood that is urgently helpful and durable.

An excellent entrepreneur attached to his hometown

June 26 of 2007 is a day of milestone for the development of charity in west Fujian. It was on this day that the city's first non-public foundation -Li San Yim Charitable Foundation was founded with investment from Li San Yim, NPC deputy, national model worker, national builder of socialist cause with Chinese characteristics, national advanced individual for brilliant and bright causes, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Lonking Holdings Limited. The Foundation aims to work on social charities and public undertakings such as health, culture, and hygiene and poverty alleviation. At the initial stage, Mr. Li donated RMB 10 million as registered capital, and moreover, he will donate a certain proportion of his personal earnings to the Foundation for five consecutive years. At the same time, the Foundation may also receive voluntary donations from the general public, in order to better exercise its social benefits.

On the occasion of inaugural meeting, Mr. Li said he will make the Foundation grow bigger and better as a second cause, help more and more people in need, and contribute to the development of socialist culture and ethics and charities.

Well, that's what he said. He did it doo.

Mr. Li is an excellent entrepreneur and businessman that grew out of Shanghang. The Longyan Engineering Machine Factory he started grew rapidly in the tide of national reform and opening up, from a petty private company to the company listed in Hong Kong - Lonking Holdings Limited. It is now one of 'Global Top 50 Engineering Machine Manufacturers', 'China Top 100 Machine Industry Companies with Core Competitiveness' and 'National 100 Star Companies with Oversea Chinese Funds'. It is also awarded the honorable titles such as 'China Quality Creditability Organization', 'National Quality Work Advanced Collective', 'National Model Hole to Employees', 'China Civilized Company in Machine Industry' and 'National Advanced Private Company for Ideological and Political Work'. While achieving something in his cause, he pays great attention to and supports the public undertakings. In the ten years from 1998 to 2007, Mr. Li had contributed more than RMB 50 million to the social public welfare programs. The founding of the Foundation in 2007 marks another breakthrough made in west Fujian charity, suggesting that his charitable journey enters a new stage.

Since the establishment of the Foundation, Mr. Li has been donating money together with his sons, daughters and families to the Foundation every year. Moreover, he withdraws a certain proportion of year-end dividends from his company, for the purpose of donation. Over the ten years, he has totally donated up to RMB 160 million. From December 2008 to August 2012, Mr. Li's father and mother passed away. The consolation money received during the funeral and the deposit of RMB 100,000 left by his parents were all donated to the Foundation. Because of his leading role, his daughters and sons will donate money to the Foundation every year. Lonking Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries, leaders and employees, as well as caring people of the society, donate their money to the Foundation. On different occasions, the Foundation has totally received nearly RMB 200 million, becoming one civic charitable organization that is strong and creditable in west Fujian and Fujian province at large.

The benevolence of the Foundation starts to shine in west Fujian and even across the country. Rooted in this fertile land of west Fujian, the Foundation breathes the same air and shares the same fate with people here. Now, it has become a charitable flag that stands erect in the vastness of west Fujian.

Sprinkle love at every corner

For those who are left behind, give them a helping hand; for those in difficulty, help them out. Where there is misfortune, the Foundation will come to its aid.

Examples include the passing away of Zhang Zhaoying's Father and the sickness of her mother in Luoyang of Henan province; the passing away of Qiu Lihua's mother and the dropout and employment of his little brother in Lvxi of Liancheng; the single-parent life lived by Lin Caili since her childhood in Nanping; the passing away of Chen Xinxiang's mother and the handicapping of his father in Peifeng of Yongding, to name just a few. In Longyan College, there are such a group of students as having their respective story of misery. Helped by the Foundation, they have made their farewell to the inferiority complex but regained their passion and confidence, thereby becoming excellent in both character and schooling. They are the aided students under the thematic event 'Convey Love - Fly Your Youth' jointly launched by the Foundation and Longyan College.

'We not only help them materially, but more importantly, encourage them spiritually. We make them go out of the shadow and embrace sunshine, thereby conveying love endlessly.' the secretary general of the Foundation told the journalist.

The 'convey love and fly your youth' activity is just one of the numerous charitable aid programs of the Foundation. Over the ten years, the Foundation has always tried to explore and improve the charitable aid programs. Now, it has covered the eight fields, such as talent cultivation and schooling, caring and aiding of orphans, poverty relief, caring for hospitalized people, caring for oversea Chinese, aid to the poverty-stricken mothers, disaster donation and relief, and public good.

Love oozes out of this set of figures. From June 2007 to June 2017, the Foundation has totally provided financial aid to 6,587 persons (times); to 1,603 orphans (times); 947 poverty-stricken rural households and urban financially-handicapped households; to 1,522 severe patients (times) to 548 poverty-stricken oversea Chinese and family members (times); to 455 rural poverty-stricken mothers (times); and to 64 public good programs. The total financial aids amount to more than RMB 78.1162 million.

Warms seeps out of these charitable actions. Since established in 2007, the Foundation set up the serious disease aid program. For example, Li Yanping, a student from Longyan No. 3 Middle School, had received liver implant as the Foundation gave her RMB 50,000 for three consecutive times. Now, Li Yanping is recovered and becomes a doctor. She presents a honorable banner to the Foundation, saying affectionately: 'My life was saved due to the donations from the Foundation and many benevolent people. I will use me medical expertise to serve more patients, and dedicate my youth to the society.'To help out those oversea Chinese who are the widows and widowers, the disabled and the sickened in bad living conditions, the Foundation started the oversea Chinese aid program, by which nearly RMB one million was donated over the ten years. This move not only warms the heart of the extended oversea Chinese, but also highly praised by the leaders from the provincial office of oversea Chinese affairs. The poverty-stricken college student Li Zhengpeng from Shanghang County smoothly studied in the university with the aid of the Foundation. After graduation, he got employed in the Ministry of Nuclear Industry. The orphan Xiang Lihua from Liancheng County was raised up in a temple since childhood, and she got all tuitions and living expenses from the Foundation when she was at school. Now she has become a teacher. After getting the subvention from the Foundation, Lai Taian, the financially handicapped employee from Beishan Coal Mine, had his actual living difficulties resolved. The family of poverty-stricken mother Zhong Meiyu from Wuping County ran into swamp as her son became sick. Knowing her urgent need, the Foundation solved the problem. As the old oversea Chinese Zhang Youying who returned to Xinluo District of China was weak and much disease-plagued, the Foundation provides financial aid to him on a yearly basis. After exceptionally severe natural disasters occurred, such as Wenchuan Earthquake, Yushu Earthquake, Fujian North Flood and Large-scale Liancheng Flood, Mr. Li San Yim and the Foundation would give donations to the disastrous areas immediately. For social public welfare programs like campus construction and upgrading, rural infrastructure construction, culture and physical education and hygiene programs, Mr. Li and the Foundatiion will generously donate their money…

Lots of charitable money warms the heart of the masses in need, like streams of warm flow. Social public welfare programs are dotted over the red land of west Fujian, like shining pearls. The letters, banners and plaques from the aided organizations and masses are like medals that murmur the outstanding contributions made by the Foundation to charity.

When you give someone a rose, the fragrance will linger over your hand. The aided organizations and masses unanimously express that they will not live up to the sincere expectation of Mr. Li San Yim and the Foundation, they will move on with a sense of gratitude, and they will pass on love to more people, in return for the country and the society.

Pragmatic and Efficient Foundation

Building 2, Lonking Home, 399 Renminxi Road in downtown areas: this is the office of the Foundation. Here, you will see plain gate, simple decoration, which are hard remind people of an enormous amount of charitable energy in it.

The Foundation impresses people much in many ways, with one way being 'use of rules for management of personnel and affairs'. Over the ten years since its establishment, the Foundation has established a set of rules and regulations in strict accordance with Chinese charity laws and regulations. In case of important events, directors' meeting and directors' office meetings will be held for collective study and democratic decision-making. In doing this, the work of the Foundation is made orderly and its management standardized, in order that each donation is open and transparent. Each public welfare donation is studied and approved by the directors' meeting, in which Minutes of Meeting are kept to become formal documents. The document is sent to the secretary general for verification before it is signed and issued by the chairman. In addition, the dossier and data for each of the 11,622 recipients (times) are made available for viewing at any time, a real practice that is fair, just and open.

It has been an important philosophy for the Foundation to show respect for recipients and make each one of them become dignified. According to the advocacy and arrangement of the Foundation leaders, each poor patient who comes to apply to the Foundation for aid and receives the subvention will enjoy the warm-hearted service of 'one smile, one hello, one cup of hot water, and one sit-down call'. The service will make each recipient feel the greetings like relatives and the warmth like the family. The financial work of the Foundation operates in a compliant way. The Foundation handles affairs in strict accordance with the financial policies, and its financial audit proves acceptable every year. It is also approved as one of the first social welfare organizations eligible for pre-tax deduction of charitable donations every year. On the other hand, the foundation has insisted on diligent and frugal operations for years. For ten years, the management fee paid by the Foundation each year has been far less than the legal payable level, only approximately 48% of the level.

For this reason, the creditability and influence of the Foundation is more felt year after year. It is therefore fully recognized and prized by the party and political leaders at all levels and by all walks of life.

In order to make the Foundation under sound, orderly development and to improve its social creditability and transparency, the provincial ministry of civil affairs made the first assessment of the foundations across the province for the first time in 2009.

Li San Yim Charitable Foundation stood out of nearly 100 candidate foundations, obtaining the title of 5A Foundation, the highest level ever seen. That year, there were only six foundations awarded such title, with only one in Longyan.

In 2010, the title of 'national advanced social organization' was bestowed on 595 social organizations, private non-enterprise organizations and foundations by the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Mr. Li's foundation was again earner of the title, becoming one of the 16 organizations being awarded in Fujian province and the only one within Longyan.

In October 2016, as recommended by civilians, voted through the internet and assessed by the experts, 'Fujian Charity 2016' civic charity chart was released. Twenty public welfare organizations of Fujian including Mr. Li's Foundation stood out, which were awarded 'Provincial Charities with Double Ten Best Performance Indicators'. Mr. Li's Foundation was in the first ranking of the chart.

The ten years' achievement is attributable to Mr. Li's selfless dedication and to the excellence of the Foundation's management team. At the beginning of the founding, Mr. Li authorized Mr. Lin Renfang to fully manage the Foundation. After retirement, Lin served as chairman, saying: 'For those years when I participated in charity work, I often feel encouraged and proud at the charitable cause we have done.' 'When facing straitened people who need financial aid, we are deeply aware that it is so significant and valuable for us to do our little bits to the charity. Whenever the love from benevolent people is conveyed through our efforts, whenever we give some help to the masses in financial difficulty, we will feel spiritual comfort inside our heart.' 'The real charity is not related to any utilitarian purpose at all. Hopefully I can work with the colleagues from the Foundation to dedicate whatever can offer to the charity. Let our mind be noble! Feel happiness in doing the charity work. '

Charity is a ray of sunlight that warms the inner heart of those who are helped. It is a drop of rain that nourishes each person in difficulty. Mr. Li claimed his determination to make the Foundation a century-old one. We are convinced that this goal will be achieved as the universal love flows and continues. More hurt hearts will be soothed, and more confused eyes will no longer hover.