China Cal’s program to train county doctors to properly examine newborns is progressing as planned. With the help of a grant from The Ping and Amy Chao Foundation of Los Altos, CA, China Cal has added an evaluation component and a University of California, Irvine Program In Public Health PhD graduate student. Ms Fangqi Guo, who will be the principal investigator for an evaluative study of the training program, will work with the China Cal team in Yunnan for several months this year. We are also grateful to the Masimo Corporation for their kind gift of 125 pulse oximeters to be used in each of the rural Yunnan county hospitals for screening newborns for critical congenital heart disease.

The following is a summary of PhD candidate Fangqi Guo’s research plan.
Undiagnosed congenital cardiac shunt lesions with pulmonary hypertension and critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) kill 3 to 4 of every thousand children in developing countries. Most of these heart defects are completely curable if discovered early in life. Yunnan Province is a slowly developing province of China. The estimated number of infants that die from these heart defects is about 400 per year. Pulse oximetry is an effective screening method to detect CCHD in very early stage. We will  provide rural Yunnan county hospitals, where most babies are now born, with equipment and training for doctors and nurses responsible for the care of neonates. We will train these doctors regarding proper neonatal cardiac examination. We will evaluate the increased knowledge and change in behaviour of these trainees. Though rural Yunnan is one of the poorest regions of China, both medical insurance options and financial assistance mechanisms are growing and the level of medical care is continuously improving. The conditions for increased awareness and discovery of undiagnosed congenital heart cases are therefore ideal for addressing this problem in Yunnan Province.

Orphan Impact is pleased to be the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the Chao Foundation and Transparent Fish Fund. The funds have been granted to support the Orphan Impact computer and internet training program for 288 orphan children, age 8 to 17, in orphanages throughout Vietnam. This is the second consecutive year Orphan Impact has received a grant from the Chao Foundation and Transparent Fish Fund. The generosity of this grant has been instrumental in helping Orphan Impact to strengthen core program areas and expand to reach more children in more orphanages.

About Transparent Fish Fund
Transparent Fish Fund is a 501©(3) US non-profit organization founded in 2011 in Palo Alto, California, established exclusively for charitable purposes to connect credible Chinese and East Asian grassroots NGOs with individuals from the West. The greater mission behind this work is to foster a sustainable long-term NGO culture in East Asia, and in doing so, spread a global spirit of philanthropy.

About Chao Foundation
The Ping and Amy Chao Family Foundation was founded in California’s Silicon Valley in 2005 by Ping Chao and his wife Amy. The foundation was established to fund nonprofit and public welfare initiatives that (1) improve children’s health in developing countries; and (2) nurture a spirit of philanthropy among the younger generation in China and of the greater Chinese Diaspora. While the Chao Foundation is based in the Bay Area and has local projects, many of its programs focus on developing countries in East Asia, from China and Cambodia to Vietnam.

Through the “Little Red Scarf” plan, Ping and Amy Chao Family Foundation, founded by high tech entrepreneur Ping Chao and his wife Amy Chao (Li Hongli), helps children living with congenital heart disease in the Province of Gansu. Recently, the foundation hosted a charity art show with artist He Yuanming to help seven-year-old child “Hongyan (alias)” have enough money to undergo surgery for congenital heart disease. Hongyan will be the 1,000th child helped by Little Red Scarf. The foundation announced on the 18th that Hongyan’s surgery was successful and that surprisingly, she could already walk only a few days after the surgery. In the future, the foundation will continue this support plan to “not only help the sick children stand up again, but also to help their impoverished families rise once more.”

Hongyan is from rural Gansu and suffers from the most severe form of congenital heart disease. Because of a lack of oxygen, her fingers are bent and her entire body is tinted purple. She also cannot walk and can only stand for a few minutes, spending most of her time squatting or being carried around by her family. Her father already passed away and her family lives in poverty. She was also projected to have a hard time recovering from the surgery. The incredible and complete success of her surgery is also a milestone for the Foundation. 

Mr. Chao points out that because Hongyan could scarcely stand before the surgery, everyone was expecting that she would need a period of recovery time before she can walk. No one expected that she was able to walk immediately after the surgery. The foundation’s representatives in Gansu immediately sent a video of her walk, making everyone enthusiastic and proud at the same time of her progress. Mr. Chao says, in the future the foundation will continue to help children with congenital heart disease both by funding their surgeries and through the “Care Plan” that helps their families transcend poverty.

Mr. Chao explains that after reaching the milestone of helping the 1,000th child, the foundation will reach even poorer rural areas to find sick children who are also most in need. They will also initiate the Care Plan to support non-medical needs of the families. For example, the foundation will loan money to Hongyan’s family to help them purchase an ewe so they can start a small business, which will alleviate their poverty.

A charity art exhibit, “Horses” by He Yuanming, is scheduled this weekend at Los Altos Youth Center, 1 N. San Antonio Road. Donations help Little Red Scarf sponsor the 1000th child suffering from congenital heart disease in China's poor, rural Gansu Province.

Hongyan, a 7-year-old girl, is suffering from the most severe type of the disease (Tetralogy of Fallot). The Los Altos-based Ping and Amy Chao Family Foundation, which is sponsoring the exhibit, notes that even donations of $10 "will go a long way towards helping her receive this life saving surgery."

The distinguished artist donated eight paintings to the cause. According to Beijing Poly International Auction prices, smaller paintings are worth about $4,000 and larger paintings are worth around $30,000, with an estimated total of $80,000.

The exhibit times are 2:30-5:30 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5:30 p.m. Sunday. Also featured is a live demo painting by He Yuanming, wishing all a prosperous Year of the Horse. An opening reception is scheduled Saturday.

Donate online by visiting www.tfishfund.org.

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Original Article: http://www.losaltosonline.com/news/sections/community/46951-exhibit-to-help-pay-for-heart-surgery

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Charity Art Show “Horses” by He Yuanming: Donations Help Little Red Scarf Sponsor the 1000th Child suffering from Congenital Heart Disease in Poor Rural Gansu Province

Distinguished artist, He Yuanming, donated a total of eight paintings to help Little Red Scarf sponsor their 1000th surgery for Hongyan. This includes two 4.5 ft x 2.2 ft large pieces and six 2.2 ft x 1.5 ft smaller pieces. According to Beijing Poly International Auction prices, smaller paintings are worth about $ 4,000 and larger paintings are worth around $30,000, estimating a total of $80,000 for 8 paintings.

Time:  March 8, 2014 (Saturday) 2:30-5:30 pm
                March 9, 2014 (Sunday) 12:00-5:30 pm

Location: Los Altos Youth Center
                  1 North San Antonio Rd
                  Los Altos CA 94022

Live demo painting by He Yuanming, wishing everyone a prosperous Year of the Horse!
Saturday: Opening Reception
Sunday: Donation of work to help the Little Red Scarf’s 1000th child suffering from congenital heart disease in Gansu Province

Sponsored by the Ping and Amy Chao Family Foundation

The Chao Foundation sponsored Beijing Normal University's SSDPP to build a curriculum for elementary students in Service Learning and Community Service. Learn more about this five-year partnership and endeavor: http://www.prscc.com/.