Jiang Yinfeng, a past President of the Student Union, in 2005, participated in the National Plan of Graduates Volunteering in the West instead of furthering her study in Australia. Her contribution to the 5.12 Wenchuan earthquake relief work resulted in an audience with China’s central government leaders. She was one of the outstanding graduates of 2005 at the School of Foreign Language Studies.
With a dream of serving as a teacher in the West, she convinced her parents to allow her to travel to Sichuan. In view of her extraordinary performance during the teaching period, she was then selected to the Sichuan Youth Volunteer Association as “a volunteer leader”.
When walking through the streets in Qionglai (a town south of Chengdu), wearing a volunteer hat and badge, she would always proudly tell the curious passer-bys that she was a volunteer. Respected and admired by others, she was brimming with joy not only because of the attention she received, but also because of the pleasant Sichuan dialect, genial local people and the picturesque landscape.
However, happiness is always accompanied with sufferings. Living alone in a strange place, she missed her parents, friends and teachers. Whenever she felt frustrated or came across difficulties, she would remind herself of her dream which kept her moving forward.
On May 12th, 2008, a sudden earthquake stroke Sichuan area, causing thousands of death and severe damage to Wenchuan. She was immediately appointed to assist in the earthquake relief work. Collaborating with her comrades, she efficiently organized and dispatched 118 volunteers throughout the area to work with the local people in their recovery from the earthquake. For months, they worked with little sleep and rest in the rescue efforts, ignoring their own safety. “I wished to be a volunteer to do everything I could whenever the victims in the stricken area were in need.” said Jiang Yinfeng.
In closing, she told her fellow students that for the rest of her life, she would never regret her efforts in Sichuan and would take volunteering as a lifelong career.
