"Look! Here they come!" A group of children, who had been waiting eagerly, waved their hands and rushed across a community square to stand by the parking area when a car with five college student volunteers wound its way down narrow roads into Huojuemo residential community in Xide, a county of Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in southwest China's Sichuan Province, in this July.
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| Several children and a college student volunteer walk over hand-in-hand to the activity site shortly after her arrival. [Photo by Ren Ran] |
After the volunteers got off, the children swarmed around them at once, held their hands and hopped merrily towards the activity site.
Scenes like this unfolded day after day during an activity, which was a part of the 2026 summer vacation care for children program launched by the China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF).
All the five volunteers are students from Southwest University of Science and Technology (SUST).
Before their arrival, several boxes of supplies, including brushes, stationery, sports gear, toys and craft materials, had been delivered to the place.
The volunteers had repeatedly refined their activity plan. Yue Bingye, their team leader, contacted community officials several times over details like specific time and activity venues.
Upon learning the news of their coming, local children visited the activity rooms each day with eager anticipation.
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| Volunteers take turns to give self-introduction at the opening ceremony of the summer camp. [Photo by Ren Ran] |
Feng Yaling, a volunteer, walked hand in hand with a girl named Agamo (pseudonym). During last year's summer vacation, Feng encouraged her to study hard. Now, the girl has made progress in her studies.
Like Agamo, Erguo (pseudonym) has still kept in mind what a volunteer said to her in a previous paired-up assistance activity. The volunteer told her to do as many good deeds as she can.
In the Yi ethnic language, the name of the community Huojuemo means "a suitable place to live." As a centralized resettlement community for poverty alleviation, it is home to more than 170 families and over 700 people. Among them are over 200 children, and the parents of many children work away from home.
The community has a special activity space for children. This is also the venue for the activity.
It has become a cherished expectation for local children to spend the summer and winter vacations with visiting college student volunteers.
The five volunteers, including Yue, Feng, Zhou Yu, Zhao Jingyi and Tan Zhujun, have participated in the program several times, either in their hometowns or other places.
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| Volunteers guide children to take part in painting, sports, and various games. [Photo by Ren Ran] |
They hoped to provide local teenagers with high-quality companionship.
As part of the activity, they encouraged the children to interview their family members or other residents.
Agamo's task was to interview her mother. "I asked my mom about her unforgettable memories and school days. She replied that she never forgot the scenes that I followed her to do farm work and family chores. Her biggest wish is that we can receive a good education," Agamo said to volunteers after the interview.
The children are growing up, and the volunteers have also achieved personal growth during their participation in the program.
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| Volunteers share appreciation letters from children. [Photo by Ren Ran] |
Feng has explored effective communication methods while accompanying introverted children. Her expression and interaction skills have made her attractive to children.
She has passed the teachers' qualification examination. "In the future, I plan to engage in work related to providing psychological support for children and teenagers," she said.
Yue has grown from a novice volunteer into a team leader who can lead more than 150 college student volunteers and independently design activity plans.
She has greatly improved her coordination, organization and interpersonal communication skills and realized personal values in the midst of organizing activities..
Tan used to be introverted. Now she has gained confidence to speak in front of others — a true personal breakthrough.
Zhao said, "Through emotional counseling and parent-child communication courses, we can prevent and resolve psychological problems that arise during the growth of children and teenagers."
The sense of warmth has always swarmed around Zhou when she reviews the photos of children's smiling faces on her phone during her spare time.
Zhou has published several academic research papers on adolescent mental health. Her visits to communities like Huojuemo have made her textbook theories tangible and real.
A boy named Rida (pseudonym) has left a deep impression on Zhou with his optimism and academic performance.
The boy lives with his two brothers since their parents work away from home. Zhou said that she has witnessed tangible benefits brought by national policies to people like Rida and his brothers. For instance, grassroots officials have helped them apply for living allowance, and care for their physical and mental health.
Slogans like "No child shall be left behind" and "Let every child feel the warmth of the Party and the government" are not empty words. They have been embodied in Rida's life.
As a native of Liangshan, Zhou has remained gratitude and inspiring. She said she will devote herself to the research of adolescent psychology and use her knowledge and skills to guard the childhoods of local children.
As the volunteers left on the last day of the activity, the children stood by the roadside to wave goodbye. But the stories of companionship, growth and mutual love will never end.
Under the guidance of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF), the CCTF launched the Guarding Childhood, Growing Up Together program aimed at offering caring services to children during summer and winter vacations in 2019. The public welfare program has collaborated with universities, women's federations and social organizations to recruit college student volunteers and called on them to carry out volunteer services in their hometowns and/or implementation areas, delivering care and warmth to local children. To date, over 10,000 college student volunteers have visited and served more than 50,000 children in 28 provincial regions across the country.
Photos from CCTF
(Source: CCTF/Women of China)
Editor: Lei Yang
