Situated in a tradtional village off Tian Bei Lu It wasn’t a huge but the location was perfect. Right at the edge of the village where people passing could easily spot us.
Rent was relatively cheap and we even had a toilet and…. heating in one room!
Within a few months, thanks to the generosity of our community, we needed more space and so expanded into the building behind us. We quickly filled that space too and it was difficult working in such cramped conditions, but we made do. The donations were coming in and being sent out to those in need and that was all that really mattered.
Leslie and her wonderful friends Amy and Colleen were soon joined by other willing volunteers ( Christyne, Becky and Tuck ) and in December 2008 we employed Liu – our first member of staff. Lily and Xiao You joined our staff in February 2009. ( Liu, Xiao You and Lily are still with us in 2014 )
This building was the first in the village to be demolished in order to make way for new upscale housing. It was sad to say goodbye, but the truth was that we had more than outgrown it anyway. We needed a bigger space!