A Record of Donations
Good Samaritans Visit Fang Dongmei at the Hospital (Photo by Zou Xiaqiu)
Message from Jingchu Network (Chutian Metropolis Daily reporter Fang Lin, correspondent Lan Yu, intern Cai Weiwei): The day before yesterday, Fang Dongmei was destitute; by 3 PM yesterday, she had already received 26,500 yuan in donations.
Among these, there was 15,000 yuan sent by Yu Youwang, 2,100 yuan donated by nine kind-hearted people who visited her, and after our newspaper published Fang Dongmei's account details yesterday, 9,400 yuan was transferred into her account between 10:35 AM and 2:58 PM. Clutching the donations from the good Samaritans, the mother who scavenges for a living shed tears: "The hospital has already waived over 100,000 yuan for my treatment. I don't need much money to live on, so everyone doesn't need to donate anymore."
Insisted on Selling Recyclables Before Admission
At 8 AM yesterday, it was the agreed time for a biopsy examination at Tianmei Breast Disease Specialty Hospital with Fang Dongmei, but by 8:45, she still hadn’t arrived.
Did something happen? The hospital called Yang Miao’s phone, and it turned out that Fang Dongmei was worried that once she was hospitalized, she wouldn’t be able to return soon, and the recyclables she collected might be "stolen" by other scavengers. So, the previous evening, she called her nephew to help her clear and sell them. They started clearing at 6:30 AM, thinking they could make it to the hospital by 8 AM, but there was just too much stuff. "I tried to persuade my mom not to clear them, but she wouldn’t listen," Yang Miao said anxiously over the phone.
So, we waited. Waiting and waiting until 10 AM, Fang Dongmei still hadn’t finished clearing. If the check-up was delayed any further, it would be too late. The hospital quickly sent a car to pick her up, and they waited another half hour at her home until 11 AM when Fang Dongmei finally arrived at the hospital.
Four Breast Cancer Mothers Came to Cheer Her On
By this time, several warm-hearted people were already waiting for her at the hospital. A retired teacher surnamed Li, after reading the report in our newspaper, carefully inquired about the hospital's address and took a bus from Xudong to Machangjiao early in the morning. She told Fang Dongmei, "We are all women, all mothers. You are truly remarkable. I can't do much to help, but I’ve brought 500 yuan, and 100 yuan is from a neighbor who runs a convenience store downstairs."
As fellow women and mothers, four special visitors waited for more than two hours at the hospital. They were all breast cancer patients who had undergone surgery. Wang Xinping, 49 years old, like the scavenging mother, also suffered from locally advanced stage III breast cancer. Two years ago, Wang Xinping underwent chemotherapy followed by surgery, and her condition is now stable. She encouraged Fang Mom: "Don't be afraid, you must persist with the chemotherapy, and things will get better." Zhang Runying, who had surgery six years ago, talked with Fang Dongmei for an entire noon, dispelling her concerns about chemotherapy.
One Donor Sent 50 Yuan Twice, Morning and Afternoon
From the morning onwards, many kind-hearted people rushed to visit Fang Dongmei at her home and the hospital.
Meanwhile, Fang Dongmei's newly opened account also received numerous donations of love. At 10:35 AM, the first remittance came into the card, amount: 50 yuan. The details did not show the donor's information. At 10:51, 2,000 yuan; at 11:30, 1,000 yuan; at 11:52, 1,600 yuan...
At 1:38 PM, another amount was transferred into the card, 50 yuan, the same as in the morning. Based on the code and notes on the receipt, bank staff analyzed that this was likely from the same person, whose life should also be very difficult.
Our newspaper also received many donation calls. One Mr. Deng, currently on a business trip in Suizhou, expressed that he would bring 10,000 yuan upon returning to Wuhan. A young person still in their internship said, "Although life is tough, I will still donate 100 yuan"...
This thick wave of love will accompany the scavenging mother in fulfilling her wish.