by Brianna Starks, 14, Priya Mirmira, 13, and Charlie Osborne, 14s
Y-Press, Inc.
PEARLAND, TX—On May 12, 2008, a deadly earthquake with a magnitude of 8.0 struck Sichuan, China. Horrified, the Li siblings of Pearland, Texas, knew they had to do something for the victims.
“After we saw the footage after the Sichuan earthquake, we wanted to make a difference,” explained Grace, 14.
Grace, along with siblings Sharon, 12, and Eric, 9, have family and friends in China and quickly sprang into action, collecting donations from neighbors and classmates. They made bookmarks to help raise money and created newsletters to educate others about the devastation in China, which eventually claimed 90,000 lives.
In one month, they raised $717.85, which Metro Bank of Houston doubled. The siblings decided to name their effort We Care Act and were still busy raising funds when they discovered that they would be going to China to deliver their donations in person.
In August 2008, the family traveled to Dujiangyan, in Sichuan province, to see the earthquake area. They met with five students who were living in temporary housing because their homes had been destroyed. Several had lost family members, too. The Lis gave each student a small sum of money as well as some simple English books and homemade bookmarks.
“They were really happy and they were glad that someone is helping them. One student actually wrote how happy he is and how he would like to also help us,” Eric said. The Lis were impressed that Sichuan authorities had erected 167 buildings in the two months since the earthquake. They vowed to continue collecting money and books to help with the reconstruction efforts.
Gathering strength
Soon after their return to Texas, We Care Act decided to expand its mission when Hurricane Ike struck Galveston in September 2008. Because the siblings live about 50 miles north of Galveston, they felt the fury of the storm, which killed 112 people in the United States.
As they did with the Sichuan disaster, they went door-to-door collecting donations. They also conducted fundraisers and collection drives at their schools and wrote about the hurricane in a newsletter, including some photos they took of the damage to Galveston.
During this time, more and more youth wanted to join in the Lis’ efforts. Family and friends in China started collecting donations for the earthquake victims. And with the help of students from The No. 1 High School in Dujiangyan, Sichuan, Grace started a bilingual newsletter called Eclipse. In it, American and Chinese students traded articles on their schools and home lives and posed questions to each other. They also shared jokes and photos of themselves and their surroundings.
Last year, We Care Act was classified as a nonprofit organization in Texas and received a Disney Minnie grant from Youth Service America and a DoSomething.org disaster grant. It also launched wecareact.org as more and more youth wanted help. On it, the organization posts its progress and newsletters and helps organize the “team leaders” who raise money and collect goods on behalf of the group.
Today, there are more than 30 team leaders and hundreds of volunteers in China, the United States, Singapore and Canada, and We Care Act welcomes many more. “If a kid sees one of our newsletters or our website and they want to help, they can e-mail one of us, or they can talk to us in person or on the phone, call us to ask for help. Everyone is allowed,” said Sharon.
Adult allies
Although kids play key roles in the organization, the Lis say they couldn’t do it without the help of adults, who help with the business side of fundraising. “I don’t think kids play a bigger part because the adults give us the opportunity to do our work, but the kids carry it out,” said Sharon.
Shixia Huang, mother of Grace, Sharon and Eric, agreed that kids and adults play an equal part. In an email, she wrote:
“I think the success of We Care Act comes from the kids who care about helping others. In addition, adults’ encouragement and help is important to ensure the success, but letting kids take responsibilities is key, so they have ownership and motivation.”
Since 2008, We Care Act has raised more than $8,000 and hundreds of donations. Most recently, it collected money and goods for Haiti. In February, it donated $1,003.45 to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and collected children’s clothes and other items for St. John’s Presbyterian Church in Houston, which shipped them to Haiti.
The group also has collected more than 1,000 books for the schools in Sichuan, 210 of which were delivered by a friend visiting China. They know that even modest gifts are appreciated.
On its website, We Care Act posted responses from some earthquake victims they met. Included is this statement by Liu Qi Long, a 15-year-old boy whose house was severely damaged in the quake:
“Life after the quake was unbearable ... Because of you, we gained confidence to rebuild our homes, Because of you, the world becomes more beautiful.”
