Song Zhiyong receiving an award from the Hebei Province Red Cross.

SONG Zhixian sits calmly on his bed smoking, his lined face often breaking into a smile as he speaks. Just a month earlier, while others were enjoying the Chinese New Year, the 48-year-old was laboring 10 to 16 hours a day on a mountainside in snow-ravaged Hunan. Song Zhixian and a group of fellow farmers journeyed from their small village in Hebei Province to voluntarily assist with relief efforts in China’s snow-bound south. Their story has become an inspiration to people across the nation.

Answering the Call of Those in Need

News of the disastrous situation in China’s south had been reaching the north for several weeks after a cold snap hit on January 10. Most of the affected areas rarely receive snowfalls, let alone blizzards of the severity seen throughout January. Roads were cut, the rail system paralyzed, and power supplies threatened. Television screens across the nation were filled with images of cities blanketed under thick snow and hundreds of thousands of passengers trapped in train stations.

Meanwhile, in Song Zhixian’s village of Dong Balipu in Yutian County near the northern city of Tangshan, locals were preparing for Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). As in the rest of China, this is a festive time for Dong Balipu residents, usually spent relaxing with family. But this year, Song Zhixian and his loved ones were destined to be apart. Faced with the news emanating from the south, Song Zhixian’s cousin, Song Zhiyong, decided he had to do something. He rented a minibus and called for volunteers. Song Zhixian’s wife was somewhat surprised when he announced he was going, but she was supportive. On Chinese New Year’s Eve, 13 local farmers climbed onto the bus and began their long drive south.

Journey to the South

Song Zhiyong drove his team for 25 hours to reach the disaster zone. “I was so tired toward the end of the journey I had to constantly pinch my leg to stay awake,” he recalls. Although the snow had stopped falling by this time, road conditions were treacherous and the air was often thick with fog.

Arriving in the Hunan provincial capital of Changsha on New Year’s Day, the farmers found the situation under control, so they headed further south, to Chenzhou, a city of 4.6 million. There they found the city’s power and water supplies cut, and people suffering under the extreme conditions. “We knew things were bad, but the situation was much worse than we’d imagined,” says Song Zhiyong. Checking into a small inn, the team set about helping in efforts to restore the city’s power.

As they lacked the technical expertise required to work on the actual electricity lines, the 13 farmers were assigned the arduous task of lugging one-ton power poles up the slopes by hand. Each pole required the efforts of at least 20 men. Thick vegetation covered the area and snow lay up to 30 centimeters deep in some patches. Their shoes quickly filled with ice, so the farmers covered their feet in plastic bags for protection. The difficult conditions meant it sometimes took an hour to cover just 200 meters. By the third day, their shoulders were bloody from carrying the heavy loads.

Despite the hardships, the northerners were deeply touched by the kindness shown to them by the people of the south. On one occasion, seven elders from Shantou, Guangdong Province, visited with supplies of clothes, gloves and boots. The people of Chenzhou donated RMB 36,000 to the volunteers, which leader Song Zhiyong later passed on to the China Red Cross. Perhaps most importantly, the farmers’ example stirred many Chenzhou locals to step forward to assist in relief efforts.

Repaying an Old Debt of Kindness

What inspired Song Zhiyong to rent a bus out of his own pocket and gather his team of volunteers? Part of the answer lies in a disaster that struck northern China more than three decades ago.

At 4 a.m. on July 28, 1976, the Tangshan area was hit by a massive earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, leveling 85 percent of the city’s buildings in a matter of seconds. The official death toll was nearly 250,000 people, though some say the real figure was much higher. The quake was felt as far away as Beijing, 140 kilometers to the west.

Song Zhiyong was a young man at the time, but still recalls the assistance that came flooding in from around the nation. He personally received medical attention from a team of Shanghai doctors. “We received help from many parts of the country during the earthquake,” Song Zhiyong explains earnestly, “so this year we had a responsibility to help in the disaster down south.”

The minibus Zhiyong rented cost RMB 650 a day, and the entire trip ended up costing him approximately RMB 30,000, representing 80 percent of his personal savings. “Although I spent a lot, not everything can be measured in money,” he states in a matter-of-fact tone. Song Zhiyong and his team were not alone in their charitable spirit; the city of Tangshan donated RMB 10 million to relief efforts during the snow disaster.

A Lasting Inspiration

After 19 days laboring on Chenzhou’s snow-covered mountains, the farmers decided to return home. They had actually considered leaving earlier, feeling the media attention they were attracting was unfair on local workers. But the spotlight hasn’t faded since their return; they’ve received a steady stream of reporters and were even brought to Beijing for an appearance on CCTV. On March 11, China’s Red Cross bestowed the title “Outstanding Volunteer” on Song Zhiyong, while his fellow farmers were named “Excellent Volunteers.” All were made honorary Red Cross members.

Although the farmers seem somewhat bewildered by the attention, they claim they don’t mind if it inspires others to perform similar acts. With the help of the Tangshan government, Song Zhiyong has founded the “Warm Hearted Movement,” a volunteer initiative to assist in local poverty relief and environmental protection. One of the farmers, Cao Xiujun, summed up the group’s feelings when they meet with China Today. Asked why he went south he said simply, “To realize my dream of helping others. To help others is to help myself.”