China Overseas Chinese Network, February 1st. According to the US "World Journal" report, after the outbreak of the new crown epidemic in the United States in March 2020, Xu Jiayi, a Chinese young man in New York, often called and chatted with his grandparents in China. As the epidemic became more lonely at home, the "Grandfather and Grandson Exchange" project was launched to bring warmth and joy to the elderly living alone in New York with other volunteers.
Xu Jiayi, who attended high school in Manhattan, New York, said that although she grew up in the United States, she has always kept in touch with her grandparents in China, and the relationship is very close. When the outbreak broke out, she realized when she was chatting with her grandparents that she wanted to do her best. Help some old people living alone in New York alleviate loneliness.
Xu Jiayi, who has rich experience in volunteer service, immediately launched an ancestor-grandchild exchange project, recruited more volunteers, and received support from local non-profit organizations. Each volunteer was paired with several elderly people and had one hour of conversation every week.
Xu Jiayi and other Chinese-speaking volunteers also started to take special phone calls for the elderly Chinese.
80-year-old Zhang Ling lives in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. She has been in the United States for 30 years. She was a doctor before retiring. After the outbreak, she was able to communicate with friends through WeChat every day, but she still felt that she could not communicate with people face to face. Lonely, starting from April 2020, she has a weekly call with Cohen, a white high school student who can speak Chinese, from the grandparents exchange program. The two have established a deep friendship.
Zhang Ling said that she and Cohn talked about hobbies and family life, and the two sang together. To help Cohn improve her Chinese level, she specially prepared a lot of Tang poetry and Song lyrics, and she taught each other every time she called, and she was also chatting. Learned a lot of new English expressions.
As more and more Chinese elderly have joined the grand-grandchild exchange program, Xu Jiayi has also cooperated with cultural organizations to launch an online music feast, inviting Chinese elders to watch Chinese movies every month, and watch "Blessings of Love" piano solo and pipa solo. After the end, the volunteers will interact with the elders to exchange their thoughts, allowing the elders to speak freely in their native language.
Organizers participating in this project said that they are particularly pleased to see everyone talking about familiar cultural content, and they look forward to meeting and chatting with these elderly people after the epidemic is over, and taking them to live performances.
(Jin Chunxiang)