Zhang Jie’s Donation of 18 Classroom Buildings.docVIP

Zhang Jie?s Donation of 18 Classroom Buildings The 82-year-old Zhang Jie is by no means a rich man in Hong Kong, but over the past 20 years he has contributed 12 million yuan to the education undertakings in Shangyu, his home county in Zhejiang Province. Eighteen classroom buildings in a total floor area of 20,000 m2 in fifteen schools in Shangyu were built with his cash donations. On February 3rd, 2009, Zhang Jie was honored with the 2008 Shaoxing Mayor?s Award in Shaoxing. He gave away half of the 50,000 in cash to Shaoxing Charity Federation and the other half to schools in Shangyu. Born in 1927, Zhang Jie went to Shanghai at the age of 11. He became an apprentice at a shop. He slept on the floor and ate leftovers but these were usual for teenage apprentices in these years. He lost his apprenticeship when Japanese invaders stormed into Shanghai in 1937. He became a tramp. He did small jobs and later started a small business for selling bamboo products, but that failed. In 1959, Zhang Jie went to Hong Kong to work for his uncle there. He had a job in a food store and he lived with his uncle.His uncle?s house was small too. So he slept on the floor again. It was not until 18 years later that Zhang left his uncle and found a place for himself. He rented a 6-m2 place in Tsim Sha Tsui, one of the major shopping areas in Hong Kong, and started his small retail business. Later he began to sell more commodities such as crabs, tea, eggs, dumplings, gums. He worked hard and he saved hard. He was proud of his savings, but he was still regarded as a poor man, for he didn?t buy a house for himself. The apartment he rented was so small that he had to sleep on the floor. Generosity His first donation to Shangyu took place in 1979. His donation was a color television set worth 3,000 yuan. He was the first person from Hong Kong who made donations to Shangyu. From then on, he donated more and more. In 1987 he made a five-year plan for rebuilding Shangyu Middle