The Columban Crafts Project in China began during 2006 in the city of Wuhan. 


The project provides an opportunity for creative work and increased social interaction to people who have special needs. The project is based in the homes of the people who participate. 


Two people are currently participating in the project. They are Li Qiong and Yuan Hong. 


Li Qiong is 30 years of age. She suffers from cerebral palsy, has never attended school and has never had a job. Li Qiong lives with her parents who have given her great love and care for the past thirty years. Their small two bedroom family home is located a short distance from the Yangtze River.


Yuan Hong is 50 years of age. He is blind in one eye and partially sighted in the other. He lives with his family in simple accommodation in the Hankou area of Wuhan city.


During the early months of the project, Li Qiong and Yuan Hong have been making Christmas cards. 


Li Qiong and Yuan Hong are supplied with the plain cards, pictures, glue, ink stamps and wooden guide-tools that allow them to make the Christmas cards. They earn a modest income for their work. Each two weeks a Columban visits Li Qiong and Yuan Hong.    




Location:


Wuhan city is comprised of three distinct areas, namely Hanyang, Hankou and Wuchang. The total population of Wuhan is over 7 million people. Located in the central Chinese province of Hubei at the intersection of the Yangtze and the Han rivers, the city has a rich cultural and political history. In June 1920 the first group of Columbans who arrived to China settled in Wuhan City.  




Free Samples:


Free samples of the Christmas cards made by Li Qiong and Yuan Hong are currently available. If you would like to receive a free sample packet of these cards, please send an e-mail with your name and postal address to:
 
columbancraftschina@gmail.com

(This offer is subject to availability)

NOTE:  Due to recent demand for our cards we have very few cards in stock and so we are unable to fill orders until the early part of 2008.


We welcome enquiries from parishes and dioceses that wish to have a formal relationship with our project. An annual commitment to sell a fixed quantity of cards each year will add to the long-term stability of this ministry.


A special word of thanks:


We wish to express a special word of thanks to the many people who have helped us to begin the Columban Crafts Project in China. To those who have purchased our Christmas cards, we also extend our deep appreciation.  


Clarification:  We wish to clarify the difference between the project participants and the artists who have helped us with the project. The artists, Theresa Wo Ye and Li Wen Hui are able-bodied people who are friends of Columbans in China for a number of years. They have allowed us to use their works of art for the purpose of printing the small pictures that are used to make the Christmas cards. Li Qiong and Yuan Hong are the project participants who make the Christmas cards with the plain card, small pictures, glue, ink-stamps and wooden guide tools that we supply to them during our regular visits.