Study On Qin Runqing’s Charitable Activities

Qin Runqing,born in Cixi,Ningbo,Zhenjiang,grew up in a poor family.Having been knowing clearly what human was suffering since he was very young,like many Ningbo fellow youngsters,he set off his journey to Shanghai as an apprentice in pursuit of his own career when he became a young man.Inspired by father ’ s death,the young apprentice made no efforts in his work and later found favor from his master with his ability and attitude,thus his potential was fully initiated.Subsequently,searching his vocational path bit by bit with pains and efforts,Qin Runqing ultimately turned to a leading figure of the financial sector in Shanghai from the 1920s to emancipation.In spite of his success in the career,his own heart of devotion pushed him to get engaged in charity and remain doing so without let-up.Doing charitable activities had thus become an undertaking he would take his whole life in.The charitable activities Qin Runqing was involved in were over 30 in different forms and scales,including funding the orphans and the poor,running schools,supporting hospitals,establishing business,founding silkworm plants and electric enterprises and so on.He was recognized as one of the well-known philanthropists in Ningbo at that time.The charitable expenditures consisted of Qin’s entrepreneurial income as a major part and his folks’ contributions.Ningbo was the beneficiary,showing his strong tie of homeland.Qin Runqing’s charity activities paid great attention to the cultivation of ethics,a combination of education and supporting.He endowed Pudi School with a four-word motto:"diligence,thrift,fairness,loyalty" to spur on students to improve their self-cultivation.Xiuneng Society was established by Qin to impart the excellent part of traditional Chinese culture as he considered the academic studying of Shanghai was currently subject to the sweeping influence of western culture.Qin Runqing’s charity activities were also characteristic of times,for instance,the Orphanage of Yunhua Hall.Yunhua Hall used to be a charity organization in a traditional sense and mainly served to offer porridge and medicines.Later,as Qin became the chairman of this organization,he actively gave an impetus to the foundation of Orphanage of Yunhua Hall and reformed it with modern elements.This Orphanage not only focused on fostering,but also stressed the education to the orphans,which displayed such a feature of a modern charitable institution that attached equal importance to cultivation and education.Cixi Baoli Hospital,a modern medical institution,applied sophisticated medical equipment and treatment system so as to improve the local medical standards greatly.The various educational institutions set up by Qin combined the traditional Chinese culture and modern education merits in the west to enrich the curricular contents.In addition,the extracurricular activities were also carried out as a complement,showing the characteristics of modern education.Undisputedly,Qin Runqing’s charitable activities have brought positive impact on the society,accelerating the development of cultural and educational undertakings in Ningbo,improving the life of local people,stabilizing the social order,thereby making remarkable contributions to the modernization.It is certain that some shortcomings still exist in his charitable activities will be stated objectively at the end of this paper.