LITTLE ROCK — Heifer International said Friday that its project sites in the Chinese provinces of Sichuan and Chonging sustained damage in Monday's earthquake.
The charity is asking for donations to help the organization re-establish its work in the affected area of China. Little Rock-based Heifer is not a relief agency; the organization helps people develop farms and related businesses so they can sustain themselves.
Heifer said its China staff has been working to collect supplies for the stricken area but it wants to shift its effort to helping restore its projects and redevelop damaged farms and communities.
Heifer has 28 projects in Sichuan and Chonging, each serving about 300 participating families. The organization has a total ofmore than 8,000 families in the affected area. Heifer says those families are in mountainous areas, living in rural homes of mainly stone or brick, construction that can easily lead to collapse.
Chengdu is a city of 12 million that is the capital of Sichuan province in west-central China. Heifer first established a presence in Chengdu in 1946, but its modern program began there in1984. Heifer says it has helped thousands of families there become self-reliant using agricultural training and livestock. Heifer provides mainly goats, pigs and other small animals to people in the area, animals that can be managed on small farms.
Heifer has projects working in 57 countries to help families and their communities become self-reliant.
Arkansas, Pages 28 on 05/18/2008