Here are three more photos from our friends at the China Photo Contest:

This photo from Ricardo Duarte comes from Xian in Shaanxi Province.

This photo from Robert DaBoss was taken in Guangzhou.

And this photo from Joew Huang was taken in Guangdong Province.

We’ll announce more photos and contest winners in the next couple of days.

One of the things I love and admire most about the Library Project is the huge amount of good that can be done with such a small amount of money. Take a close look at the resources available in this rural community, the dedication of the children and the looks on the faces of the children that signify success for this endeavor.

Only a $1,000 will equip a rural classroom/orphanage with much needed literacy tools.

It doesn’t get any or easier to make a difference than this. Head over to The Library Project to make a one-time recurring donation.

The Library Project is the easiest charity on the planet to support: They have a clear purpose, a verifiable track-record, a vision for the future and they ask so little with which they accomplish so much.

Make some space on your blog or website and show that you care by placing a visual link to our friends by going here: LIBRARY PROJECT

Their mission is clear, their dedication extraordinary and their cause a most important one. To support the Library Project is one of the most cost-effective ways you will ever have to make a real difference in a lot of young lives….

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 I recently received some information from Tom, our friend from the Library Project, sent us some fantastic news about the Library Project and its latest developments.

“The past three months have far exceeded the The Library Project’s goals and expectations. There is so much to share - from our new home in Xi’an, China to an incredible list of schools benefiting from our support - so let’s get started.

“In September, The Library Project donated our first library to a Chinese countryside elementary school. The Xin Xing Elementary School is located an hour outside of Xi’an, in the ShaanXi Province. Over 500 students in grades 1-6 attend the Xin Xing Elementary School. During our pre assessment we discovered the school library’s uninviting environment and general lack of age appropriate books. Most of the books in the existing library were written for high school or university students with a total of less than 50 children’s books for grades 1-3.

“The Library Project provided 500 children’s books for grades 1-3 and a child-safe reading area with comfortable and colorful furniture. We provided a wide range of children’s books including: history, science, short stories, fairy tales, “pinyin” books for very young readers, children’s dictionaries, children’s reference books, and an assortment of comic books. We also provided a full set of children’s encyclopedias for older students. Every book was in full color and of the highest quality. The Library Project provided colorful child-safe tables and chairs, posters and a globe to populate the previously empty room. Once the library was completed, we held a party to celebrate our accomplishments with the children. Twenty “star” students were chosen to participate in arts, crafts and games. One of our activities had the children draw their “dream library”. We learned that most children want a library located outside consisting of colorful books which float in the air. (We’re working on that concept for a future library.)

“Without a doubt The Library Project has improved the level of education that the Xin Xing Elementary School provides to its students.

“We didn’t stop there. In October The Library Project completed a phenomenal feat of donating three libraries in three days. The libraries are located at three different elementary schools in the countryside of Xi’an: the Si Qing Elementary School, Bai Lu Yuan Elementary School and Mi Cun Elementary School. Furthermore, all the items donated were upgraded from our previous library. We provided higher quality books, better seating, sturdy wooden tables and bookshelves custom made at a local factory, and we even found cacti and plants to put on the tables and shelving.

“Providing three libraries in three days pushed us both mentally and physically. We had a team of over 20 volunteers helping with the delivery of the materials, setting up furniture, sorting books, and playing games with the kids in their new library. Through our experiences we learned this one simple fact: that when The Library Project arrives in a countryside school, the students go absolutely crazy. The madness usually begins when we pull up in our large truck and the children come running out of their classrooms.

“For our next goal, I need your help. In the past we have benefited one school at a time and now we are looking to help an entire school district. We want to make a clear IMPACT on the level of education an entire school district will be able to offer its students. Our first school district we would like to help will be the Ba Qiao School District (the same school district where our last three elementary schools were located).

“The Ba Qiao School District is an hour outside of the Xi’an city center. This area was hit very hard by the closure of state run factories over the past twenty years. Because of the closures and the lack of work, the average annual income is less than 2,000 RMB ($266), and there is very little hope that things will change for the better in the future. To learn more about the Ba Qiao School District, please click here.

“If you are interested in Adopting a Library or adopting a group of schools through our Adopting a School District programs, please click here for more information. You can also send me an email at [*tom@library-project.org* ] to ask any questions about the library adoption process.

“Furthermore, our website has been updated and improved to help both large and small donors have a better idea of exactly how their financial contributions are put to work. We also added an Adopt a Library page for those who would like to provide an entire elementary school with a library. The page also contains information on the Ba Qiao School District. Everyone who donates to the Adopt a School or Adopt a School District programs will receive a Library Completion Report for the specific library that you supported, along with a beautiful hardcover book celebrating our past libraries and the communities and schools we have worked in.

“I am very happy to announce two new additions to The Library Project’s team. Jenny Wang is our first full time employee in China. Jenny is from Hunan Province and has lived in Xi’an for the past ten years. A short list of some of her accomplishments these past few months have been getting us a 20 - 65% discount on children’s books at the country’s largest chain of bookstores, managing our growing list of partners in China, spearheading the completion of our first four libraries in Chinese countryside elementary schools, and doing non-stop assessments of schools and orphanages. Welcome aboard Jenny!

“I am also very happy to announce that Kevin Kruse has joined our Board of Directors. Kevin Kruse joined in August and has been an incredible addition to the team. Kevin has been instrumental in helping create a solid business foundation for The Library Project. He was also our first donor to support our Adopt a School District program. To learn more about Kevin, please check out his bio by clicking here. Welcome Kevin!

“Lastly, please check out some of our new products for the holiday season. We created 50 book, 100 book, 250 book and 500 book gift cards available at $1 a book. Each card also has a beautiful picture of a past library we have donated. The gift cards are a perfect holiday gift idea. To check out our new online store, please click here.

“Your help is greatly appreciated. Click here to make a donation and help give the gift of education and opportunity to a child in Asia. As a result of your donation you will receive photos and a Library Completion Report on the library you helped make a reality. Your donation truly does make a difference.

“The Library Project is a non-profit organization. Your donation is 100% tax deductible. Thank you in advance for your kind support of our efforts.”

Sincerely,
Thomas Stader
The Library Project
Founder

中文 

A few months ago, Yanzhi and I met Thomas Stader, the man who created The Library Project. His project donates books and libraries to underprivileged schools and orphanages in the developing world. Stader created this project because he believes education is the key motivator to breaking the cycle of poverty that exists in the developing world. For him, education is change. The Library Project accomplishes its work by getting the local community involved through book drives and awareness raising, establishing bi-lingual libraries, and partnering with local orphanages and schools.

I recently received a note from Thomas that he has built a new library, and I’d like to share what he sent to us.

“Everyone at The Library Project are very excited to announce that we have provided our first library to a countryside elementary school in China.

“There are over 500 students, grades 1-6 that attend the Xin Xing Elementary School. One third of the students that attend Xin Xing Elementary School are worker children. Worker people are people that do manual labor in China. Their jobs can be anything from building highways to building apartment blocks. They tend to be migratory, going where the work is, and once the work is finished they pick their family up and go again where the work is. Because the area around the Xin Xing Elementary School was declared a Special Development Zone by the Central Government, there has been an influx of Worker Families and their children. As you can imagine, this puts an added strain on the school budget that the administration must balance at the Xin Xing Elementary School.

“Even with this added strain, the Xin Xing Elementary School has an incredible school administration with the Vice Principle named Mr. Zhong being a key player. We met Mr. Zhong one day during the Summer Break when we showed up unannounced and he welcomed us at the gate. He was alone, cleaning the school in preparation for the approaching Fall Semester.

“During our Pre Assessment we found the school library located in a dirty room on the fourth floor of the school. Even though it was dirty, the books were all very well kept, in new book shelves the Central Government had just provided. Their collection of books numbered 3,000. This sounds like a very impressive number, but the books they had in the library were almost completely inappropriate for the children attending the elementary school. Most books were written for High School or University students, or were published in the 1970s and were showing their age. There were no more than 50 children’s books for grades 1-3. The library room also lacked any comfortable furniture for the children sit on.

“On September 25, 2007, The Library Project provided 500 children’s books for grades 1-3, and also a child safe reading area with comfortable and colorful furniture for the children to be able to sit down and read a book. We also provided a full set of children’s encyclopedias for the older learners. After the furniture and books were setup, we held a party to celebrate the children’s new library. Twenty “star” students were chosen to participate in arts, crafts and games. Everyone had a great time.

“Most importantly, the administration really saw how much the children enjoyed their new library. The Xin Xing Elementary School administration made a plan to make sure every class has an opportunity to use the library once a week.

“Without a doubt The Library Project has improved the level of education that the school provides to its students.”

If you have any questions, please contact Thomas Stader at: [*tom@library-project.org *].

Read on »

中文

This video was taken during our trip to Dalian by Chris Amico and the team at DalianDalian.com. We tried to give an idea of what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, and how it will help other people. Lonnie says I’m either signing or I learned how to speak English from the Italians. And of course, when friends have watched, they are always quick to comment, “So…Professor Lonnie really likes to talk, doesn’t he?”

All of this was shot at a Korean restaurant in Dalian, set with a background of local northern Chinese music. Enjoy.

  Read on »

Today we are featuring photos posted on our Over the Wall group on Facebook.

This photo comes from Nathan Beauchamp Mustafaga and was taken in Shenzhen:

A photo and caption from Paul James:

“This is the Hua Pagoda in Xi’an at night. This near the south gate of the inner city of Xi’an. This is not to be confused with the Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an as well, which dates back to the Tang dynasty. Though I don’t have any pictures of that particular pagoda, it’s quite an impressive site, with amazing stamina. In 1556 a massive earthquake hit this area, which killed an estimated 800,000 people (to date, the most devastating earthquake in human history) The Wild Goose Pagota withstood the earthquake. But the force of it was so outstanding, that it went from around 17 meters high to 15.5. The earthquake shook it so much that it settled into its foundations 1.5 metres! Amazing!”

The last photo we’ll show today comes form Zine Van Der Walt and was taken in Kaifeng, Henan Province:

Until the photo contest begins, we’ll continue to run a daily contest for you to vote on your favorite photos:

[poll=7]

Keep voting and sending photos to [*photos@blogofdreams.com *]!

And of course, keep dreaming:

A few weeks ago, we mentioned the Library Project here on the Dreamblogue. Now, we want to mention them again. They have begun their expansion into China, and we want to bring you news about their latest happenings. From the Library Project’s press release:

“Everyone at The Library Project are very excited to announce a partnership with Aston English in China. Over the next year The Library Project will conduct ‘The Aston Library Project’ within each of the Aston English schools in China.

“The Aston Library Project will hold book drives at each of their English schools. These book drives should net about 50,000 Chinese language children’s books donated to schools and orphanages in China. The Library Project with the help of Aston English volunteers will then source the donated books to local orphanages and schools. These libraries will be outfitted with tables, chairs, mats and lighting when appropriate for the location.

“Aston operates more than 40 English schools in China and the US. In 1996 Aston opened its first English language school in China and is now operating in more than 26 Chinese cities.

“Because of Aston English’s footprint in China, The Libarary Project has an opportunity to make a huge difference in a very short period of time. A list of cities that are up for libraries are: Beijing, Dalian, Xian, Weinan, Xianyang, Xingping, Yanliang, Chengdu, Kunming, Guiyang, Chongqing, Jinan, Wuhan, Hanzhong, Baoji, Tongchuan, Yanan, Yulin, Dandong, Dongying, Xuzhou, Quingdao and Lianyungang.”

“Thomas Stader, Chinese Country Director said, ‘This partnership is a great example of Aston English’s commitment to education and the betterment of each community that they work within. We are all very excited about this partnership.’”

We will continue to place regular updates here on The Library Project. You can donate directly to the Library Project by clicking here:

Online Donations

You may use our secure online credit card donation form to donate to The Library Project using your Visa, MasterCard, or American Express card.

Give a one-time donation: $

Monthly Donations

Set up reoccuring monthly donation for The Library Project. Five dollars a month can make a huge difference in the lives of many children in Asia.

Monthly donation: $   for   months.

每日特色中国图片：西安河南和上海

Photos today are also featured on the Dreamblogue’s Facebook group Over the Wall.

今天的图片同样发表在载梦博客的 Ｆａｃｅｂｏｏｋ 的 Over the Wall 圈子里.

This photo comes from Paul James on his trip to Xian:

这张来自 Paul James 在西安旅游的相片：

Paul added the following note: “This is probably my favorite picture I took in Xi’an. These are Chinese Muslims waiting to go to the prayer hall. A little history. Xi’an is the former site of ancient Chang’an, the historic capital of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 CE) and is still considered by most (except maybe the Communist Party) as the height of Chinese civilization. Chang’an was at that point the largest city in the world, and was the eastern end of the famous Silk Road. As such, it drew people from all over the world, including a new religous group known as Muslims. Many of the middle-eastern travellers who came to trade with China ended up staying in Chang’an and converting the locals to their new religion. As such, the 回民 (hui min) grew into what is now one of China’s 56 ethnic minorities. 回 (hui) in the Chinese language means ‘return,’ which explains how they got the name, because every Muslim, at some point in their life, is supposed to ‘return’ to Mecca. There is a wonderful Muslim quarter in Xi’an, and probably one of the coolest places in the city.”

This next photo is from Zine Van Der Walt and was taken in Henan province at the Fuxi Mountain Snowflower Caves:

接下来的这张照片来自 Zine Van Der Walt 的相片，拍摄于河南省伏羲山的雪花洞：

And finally, some Chinglish. This photo comes from Barbara Octaviani and was taken in Shanghai:

最后来一些中国式英语．这张照片来自 Barbara Octaviani 拍摄于上海的照片

Again, we are setting up a vote on the best photo of the day. Help your favorite get to number 1:

继续，我们设置每日最佳图片奖。快为你最喜欢的图片投一票，助它夺冠吧！

[poll=4]

Keep sending in photos to [*photos@blogofdreams.com *]!

继续发相片来这个邮箱：[*photos@blogofdreams.com *]!