Profiles

Big-hearted dwarf overcomes obstacles

(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-04-07 16:31

Wei Zeyang, a 22-year-old dwarf man from a poor farmer family in Anhui Province, has lived a pretty tough life.

But then again, he considers himself more independent than his friends.

Wei stopped growing at the age of 8, reaching only 122 centimeters tall, largely due to an endocrine disorder.

Wei Zeyang, carries a bag of rubbish he picked up. [China Daily]

Wei had a happy childhood, as he was smart and performed very well at school.

As he grew up, he started to become aware that he was different from others, and sometimes felt hurt when he got strange looks.

When he was a first-grade middle school student, his father suffered a bone fracture and the family was thrown into financial difficulty. The family could no longer support the schooling of all three children.

Wei, considered by his parents of having less of a chance in the future of finding secure work because of his height, was forced to convince them he could help pay for his education, doing odd jobs.

He then spent every holiday scouring for rubbish to raise enough money for his education.

And when he wasn't working, Wei would use every opportunity to study textbooks.

In the summer of 2003, Wei, after attending the national university entrance examination, was in Yantai, Shandong, collecting rubbish when his father informed him that a university in Chongqing Municipality had accepted him.

Wei could not hold back his tears at the news.

Wei's story was picked up by a local newspaper, which reported the inspirational tale to Yantai's residents. Touched by Wei's spirit, a local company hired him to distribute leaflets and paid him 100 yuan ($13) a day, and some residents donated several thousand yuan to give him a boost.

During his studies at university, Wei was awarded scholarships every year for his good performance.

By using the scholarships and money he had earned working part-time, Wei covered all his life and tuition expenses by himself. In addition to that, he even paid part of the tuition fees for his elder brother and younger sister.

Wei received a donation of 22,000 yuan ($2,820) from his university and community in 2004, after he was diagnosed with a terminal osteonecrosis. He donated all the money back to the university before his graduation in 2006, after knowing that the possibility of recovery was slim. [Chongqing Morning Post]

In 2004, Wei was diagnosed with a terminal osteonecrosis and was given a donation of over 22,000 yuan ($2,820) from the university and community. Knowing that the possibility of recovery was slim, Wei donated all the money back to the university prior to his graduation in 2006.

In February 2007, Wei was named one of the top 10 individuals who touched Chongqing the most in 2006.

After graduation, Wei returned to Yantai where he used to pick rubbish, to work there for an internship.

Questioned about his passion for Yantai, Wei said that it was the residents in the city who generously helped him out of difficulty years ago and made him feel at home there.

Wei is now living at the home of a middle-aged woman who gave him several hundred yuan in 2003.

And he is working in an office building near the railway station, a stone's throw distance from the place he used to collect rubbish in 2003.

Wei said he had been deeply moved by the friendly city and wished he could stay there permanently.