Story and photos by Zhang Lei | Earthquake Rehabilitation Project Officer | Heifer China
Even the hot weather couldn’t lessen the enthusiasm at a Passing on the Gift® (POG) ceremony held by the Xianling community. On August 8, 2012, 69 project farmers took part in this event. Village leaders and Mu Ping, Heifer China’s Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Manager, expressed their appreciation to the project farmers for their contributions. Participants, who were once recipients and now donors, are rightfully proud of their efforts. A nearby community, Longqiao, sent dancers and other performers to celebrate when they heard Xianling was going to hold the POG, which added more joy to the already lovely atmosphere.
The Earthquake Rehabilitation Program sub-project in Anxian consisted of eight units. The project began in July 2009 in Xianling with 71 project farmers. Although there were barriers to overcome throughout implementation, all issues were eventually resolved. Initially, the plans called for cows to be included in the POG. Unfortunately, breeding didn’t go as well as expected, mainly due to difficulties in acclimatizing after distribution. After several meetings and consultations with farmers were conducted by Lei Xing, they agreed to pass on pigs to the beneficiary farmers, since they have more breeding experience with them. It was understood by the project farmers that income generated from this activity was not as significant as with cows, but they insisted on proceeding. Their willingness to share and their considerable manner aligns with the Heifer spirit. Undoubtedly, the future of Xianling is bright thanks to the relationship between Heifer and the project farmers.
