Zhang Qian

zhqcindy@163.com

AMONG the 1,617 charity projects that participated in a road show at the 6th China Public Welfare Charity Project Contest on Sunday, 30 projects stood out and moved on to the final round. A local charity project initiated by the Xihan’er Car Wash won one of the 10 gold awards at the road show.

In a competitive road show that lasted for nearly six hours, the Xihan’er Car Wash project, together with projects dedicated to caring for orphans, comforting families of organ donors and some others, won the judge panel’s recognition. Each winning project has been rewarded 100,000 yuan (US$15,160) as a prize.

The other 20 finalists also received awards of 50,000 yuan and 20,000 yuan. All of the winning organizations will be invited to showcase their projects at the coming China Charity Fair in Shenzhen next year.

The Xihan’er Car Wash is a special operation located in Meilin in Futian District and is dedicated to providing jobs for intellectually challenged adults. It is the first of its kind on the Chinese mainland. The car wash has been open to the public since Aug. 8, 2015.

In most places in China, special education schools and rehabilitation centers only accept children younger than 18 years of age. Where the children will go and what they will do after graduation is always a big concern for these young people’s families. The Xihan’er Car Wash project has pioneered the exploration of business models that address this social problem.

“My dream is to create a village for these special children: a sustainable organization that offers jobs and care for their whole lives,” said Cao Jun, founder of the car wash and a care center for special kids. Cao is a father of an intellectually challenged child.

“When the parents of the older kids pass away, the parents of the younger kids can take over the responsibility of caring for the intellectually disabled people who are already at senior ages,” Cao said in an earlier interview.

The contest was jointly hosted by the China Charity Alliance and the Shenzhen Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau. Over the past five years, the contest has reviewed 4,172 charity projects from all around China and brought along a total social capital investment of over 42 million yuan.