Episode 7: George Shi, Founder of #FightForWuhan

We are honored to have George Shi with us in today's episode. George is a freshman at College of William and Mary. He is also the founder of the North American Students Branch of #FightForWuhan, a student volunteer organization in North America founded since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. One month after George started #FightForWuhan, the organization had recruited more than 2,000 volunteers, raised more than 960,000 yuan (about 144,000 US dollars) of donations, opened 29 transportation routes, and successfully delivered medical supplies to nearly 300 hospitals and units in Wuhan. #FightForWuhan was reported many times by People's Daily, the Beijing News, and other official media, and has also received the attention and reposts from Yao Chen, Guo Zifan, Liu Jiayi, KatAndSid, and other Weibo influencers. In this episode, we will talk with Geroge about his story and experience with #FightForWuhan. 

This episode is in Mandarin. English transcript can be found below:

What drove you to take action in helping Wuhan?

I heard from my friends that Wuhan was under lockdown. Then I saw many large hospitals in Wuhan, such as XieHe and Wugang Hospital, had posted information on medical supplies shortage and asked for urgent donations on Weibo. I also saw a lot of front-line medical staff had to use raincoats as their protective clothing because of the shortage. All in all, the situation in Wuhan at that time made me very worried. But what really motivated me to take action and started #FightForWuhan was when I saw a video of a mother in Wuhan who was visiting her son, a doctor who was tested positive for COVID; the mother was standing outside the door and asking her son to take good care of himself. This video really touched me because, from a micro lens, you see how COVID has had a significant impact on Wuhan and even on China as a whole. So at this time. I decided that I want to do something for Wuhan. 

“From 0 to 1”

I didn't expect #FightForWuhan to grow this big. We had recruited more than a thousand volunteers in just eight hours and opened three group chats on WeChat. This also adds a lot of pressure because we need to manage the group properly every time we open a new group chat. As a founder, I experienced a lot of stress and responsibilities. Because we want to build the whole team from zero to one immediately, I remember that on the first day, I went all night without sleeping because there were so many tasks on hand. When working in #FightForWuhan, I basically didn't have time to take care of other things, but I think it's really worth it. I saw the responsibility and mission I had as the founder of #FightForWuhan. And I believe what we were doing was connected with the lives of many in the city of Wuhan.

Challenges Faced by the Teenager’s Identity

Well, there are actually many. Many people were questioning what a group of 18 or 19 years old could do. We raised a total of about one million yuan in donations, which is a huge amount of money. To #FightForWuhan, many people will question whether a group of young people who have never done charity work are competent to do the job. To myself, people would also question my personal ability to manage the group properly. In fact, I could feel that people were hesitant and careful when reaching out to us in the beginning.

Highlight Moment

The most significant moment or highlight for our organization was probably when Yao Chen, a famous Chinese actress, reposted our Weibo. Our entire team was literally on fire after this because Yao Chen had given us hope and confidence. On the other hand, a significant highlight for me personally was when People's Daily reported us. People's Daily launched a hashtag about teenagers' responses to Wuhan on Weibo, and I found that they also cited #FightForWuhan stories. I was really excited when I saw this news and felt recognized and how our actions have actually helped many people.

Just do it! 

#FightForWuhan was also my first time doing volunteer and charity work. I think the whole team helped me move up the ladder of success. Because of my teammates, I was able to walk down such a long road. 

Personally, it may be that I am willing to try new things and to step out of my comfort zone. If you have a good idea, don't give up just because you are afraid of the upcoming difficulties. Your idea can be very unique and successful. And building your vision from scratch is an opportunity for personal growth, which you really have to seize this opportunity. I also encountered many difficulties that I had never thought of and some life experiences that I had never experienced when I was doing #FightForWuhan. 

Then the second point is we need to keep the momentum going when doing teamwork. To a large extent, the quality of a team directly determines the success of the project. We must know how to get along with a group of diverse people because every person is unique and has different habits and strengths. Therefore, we need to understand how to handle interpersonal relationships when working in a team. Lastly, of course, the most important thing is to establish a sense of belonging and home in a group. Creating a sense of belonging will keep everyone motivated and strive for a goal together.

Overall, we hope you can get some inspiration from George's story with #FightForWuhan!

Produced and Translated by Rica Zhang.