Group Seeks To Help Orphan

As candy-seeking children traipsed across the city yesterday evening to celebrate Halloween, a group of 30 members of Harvard China Care (HCC) went trick-or-treating for a different reason: to save Chinese orphan Fu Jinjin’s life.

Fu is a two-month-old living in Henan, China who suffers from myelomeningocele, a disease in which spinal fluids leak from the spinal cord. She needs an operation which would close the leak and drain any excess fluid in her cerebellum.

An American surgeon pledged his professional help to the case if HCC could raise $6,000 this Halloween to cover the hospital fees, according to HCC’s website.

As of 8 p.m. yesterday, HCC Co-President Aidan S. Madigan-Curtis ’07 said she was hopeful that the group had achieved its goal, though members were still waiting for the final count.

The trick-or-treating fundraiser fits with HCC’s mission of helping orphaned and special-needs children in China.

“There are endless medical procedures needed by these Chinese orphans but there are only a lucky few that we find out about,” Madigan-Curtis said.

Last year, the group mounted a comparable effort and managed to raise $1,531 for a heart operation which ended up saving the life of Chinese orphan Guo Yanfei.

Guo is now eight years old and, thanks in large part to the efforts of the HCC trick-or-treaters, leads a normal life.

As group members fanned out in pairs last night, trick-or-treating all the way from Brattle Street to Beacon Hill, organizers instructed them to be courteous and emphasize the importance of their cause.

They opened the conversations with an exuberant “Happy Halloween,” and followed up with a short presentation on the infant’s condition, complete with photographs.

HCC received a large variety of responses, ranging from a curt “no thank you” to a warm discussion ending in a contribution.

“Some people are inviting, others see that you’re not in costume and won’t open the door,” Madigan-Curtis said.

All of the proceeds will go straight to the fund for Fu Jinjin, and the donations are tax deductible, since the organization is recognized by the U.S. government.

HCC members come from different backgrounds but, as Madigan-Curtis said, “they share an interest in issues related to Asian and Chinese cultures.”

According to Madigan-Curtis, the group is made up of three categories of members: 25 who organize a bi-monthly playgroup for adopted Chinese orphans in Cambridge’s First Church basement, about 10 volunteers each year who go to China over the summer to work first-hand with orphans, and 18 other members who work regularly to secure funding for the group.

In addition to trick-or-treating, HCC holds a number of events throughout the year, including fundraisers, a dinner in December, and a series of activities around the Boston Marathon.