Surprises Await Those From St. Louis Who Travel Halfway Around the World for Half the Sky

By Lynn Raney

For anyone making a trip to China there are the typical adjustments to make - different food, avoiding tap water, chopsticks at every meal and language barriers.  But our group had added considerations, such as Muslim extremists protesting the war in Iraq and, of course, SARS.

When the trip was over, our ‘welcome home' was the biggest surprise of all.

It all started when I was accepted as part of a Half the Sky (HTP) work crew to help at the Shaoyang, Hunan Social Welfare Institute, my youngest daughter's first home.  I was thrilled. What a wonderful opportunity to give something back to those who gave my daughter a loving start in life and a fulfilling way to help those children who still wait for their forever families. Of course, on a personal note, it was perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see inside the institute. Seeing my daughter's crib, meeting her ayi and generally getting a better feel for what she experienced the first year of her life was a tremendous opportunity. But beyond that, giving something to all those other children filled me with a feeling unlike any other I have ever felt.

My oldest daughter (Olivia, 7 ˝) was my travel companion. As we prepared for the trip, we were well aware that the war in Iraq was beginning and that concerns about SARS in mainland China had increased. However, we were not overly concerned since the war did not involve China and SARS was not reported in Shanghai or Hunan Province, the areas in which we were scheduled to be.

Our first surprise was in the rural setting of Shaoyang, about 3 ˝ hours outside of the Provincial capital of Changsha. After driving through the countryside to get to the relatively small community of just 7.6 million people, it was the last place where we figured we would be affected by the war. Little did we know that just outside of the city limits was a sizable Muslim community who happened to be Saddam sympathizers. They had petitioned China to be allowed to leave the country and fight in the war. China had not approved this, so they sent 100 people into the city of Shaoyang to protest the decision. It was this demonstration that caused the provincial and city governments to be concerned for our safety. Our group was the only group of Westerners currently in Shaoyang, a city that gets very few such visitors any way. Because we were very readily identifiable, we were also potentially targets for political danger. With this in mind, we were asked not to roam the city and explore in the ways that we would have enjoyed. For those of us with children from Shaoyang, this was a disappointment but we fully understood the need to maintain a low profile. With virtually nothing else to do, and a hotel that was less than enjoyable (another story for another time!) we worked longer than usual hours at the institute and completed the two-week job in just one week. This was a relief to all concerned for our safety as it meant that we could leave the area much sooner than scheduled.

But we were schedule to be in China for two weeks - what would we do after Shaoyang? With the increasing concerns about SARS, HTS had suggested to the work crew due in April for the Yueyang Social Welfare Institute job that they not make the trip. We were asked, but in no way coerced, if we would be interested in staying in Hunan and completing this job. Our entire work crew, then fully aware of the rewarding feeling of helping the children, agreed wholeheartedly to continue. More than once, HTS offered us the opportunity to return home.

Yes, SARS was and is real, and the media hype in the U.S. would scare anyone senseless, but we felt that the information from those who truly understood the situation did not suggest we should alter our plans. So, we continued on.  We were careful and not cavalier about the situation. We did not take unnecessary chances or put our children in situations in which we felt they would be unnecessarily exposed to SARS. We did not travel in large groups on city busses, we wore masks when flying within China, we were careful to keep our hands clean and off our faces and we continued to wear masks in large crowds (boarding and deplaning) when traveling internationally. Reasonable caution was called for and was sufficient. 

Little did I realize the "welcome" we would get upon our return. Not having much in the way of U.S. media exposure while we were in China, I was not aware of the fear that had gripped almost everyone I knew. My daughter's health was questioned as she returned to school and activities, colleagues with whom I had meetings asked if they needed to wear masks, and more than one person e-mailed asking if we were SARS-free. Of course, there was the friend who e-mailed and simply said "welcome home and I won't ask you what everyone else is asking," and the Chinese American friend who welcomed us home saying "I think what you did was tremendous." 

Would I participate in another HTS effort? You'd better believe it! All the challenges we faced could not outweigh the great reward and fulfillment I felt after improving the lives of the children we served.