Love Brings a Better Future. A ceremony of 56 children fulfilling their dreams was held on June 22 in Beijing. At the ceremony, 56 children, some of whom are disabled, from 13 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions fulfilled their wishes that they made at the beginning of the event "Cheer for Beijing Olympics and Win with Bank of China - Beijing Olympic Journey for Children from 56 Ethnic Groups". They received rehabilitation and learning facilities such as hearing aid, wheel chair, blind cane, computer or learning machine. Present at the ceremony were Wang Xinxian, Vice President and Party Leadership Group Secretary of the China Disabled Persons' Federation (CDPF), Lu Yongzheng, Secretary of the Central Committee of China Communist Youth League, Zhang Shiping, Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation, Tang Xiaoquan, Executive Vice President of Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad and President of the Executive Board of the CDPF, Li Lihui, President of Bank of China, Lv Shiming, Vice Chairman of the CDPF, Yang Guiren, Director General of the Department of Physical, Health and Arts Education of the Ministry of Education, and Zhang Qiuping, Director of the BOCOG Paralympic Games Department of the Games of the XXIX Olympiad. They all brought gifts for the children.
Wang Xinxian, Vice President and Party Leadership Group Secretary of the CDPF, spoke highly of the event. He said such event would become a lifelong memory for these 56 children. He also encouraged children from all nationalities to care for others, be strong, and work hard to be an able person.
Li Lihui, President of Bank of China, said in his speech that this event showed Bank of China supported Paralympic Games and the undertaking of disabled persons, and cared for children of all nationalities. With active preparation for the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games, Bank of China continued to show its support to the disabled and its care for the children. The bank fulfilled its corporate social responsibility by pursuing "Humanistic Olympics" with a spirit of public service. President Li Lihui also called on the private and public sector to shoulder more social responsibilities and make efforts to build a more harmonious society.
Jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Education, the Communist Youth League Center Committee, the All-China Women's Federation, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad and the CDPF, "Cheer for Beijing Olympic Games and Win with Bank of China -- Beijing Olympic Journey for Children from 56 Ethnic Groups" is a public welfare event organized by Bank of China and the China Commission of Promotion of Publicity for the Undertakings of Chinese Disabled Persons. This event vividly delivered the Olympic philosophy of "One World, One Dream" as it showed that disabled children, like healthy ones, can also fulfill their dreams in this world. Moreover, the event also embodied "Transcendence, Integration and Equality", the concept of the Beijing Paralympic Games.
These 56 children participated in the four-day event under the theme of "Friendship, Convergence and Happiness". By visiting the Bird's Nest, the Water Cube and the training base of Paralympic Games, the children had a closer look at the Olympic Games and better understanding of the Paralympic Games. They were impressed by the Olympic spirit. By visiting the Forbidden City and attending the flag-raising ceremony, they experienced the greatness of the country. By interacting with children from volunteer families, they felt the capital city's harmony and warmth. Before the start of the event, these 56 children expressed their wishes to the sponsors. Some wanted rehabilitation equipment such as hearing aid, blind cane and wheel chair, while others preferred learning facilities such as computer, learning machine, cell phone for the blind, and electronic dictionary. With the loving care and support of Bank of China, the sponsors satisfied all their wishes. Suolang Ciji, a 13-year old orphan of the Monba nationality, lives in school. She has never used a hearing aid nor received any hearing examination. She wished she could hear. Through this event, Suolangciji fulfilled the wish to hear the wonderful world along with other 16 deaf children. Guli Jiamali, a lively but physically disabled young girl of the Tajik nationality, is good at singing and dancing. Upon receiving a laptop, she said excitedly that she would study diligently and contribute to the motherland and the society in return.
"With gratitude in my heart, I give my sincere thanks to you for accompanying and encouraging me to be strong during my whole life. With gratitude in my heart, I give my thanks to the destiny. I will value both tears and laughter." The sign-language show of "A Thankful Heart" performed by these 56 children and the staff of the Presidential Beijing touched the heart of everyone present at the ceremony.
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