It was a tragic day when a fireworks factory explosion in his neighborhood left Shi Qinghua's wife and son severely burned.

The family tried to sue but received neither compensation nor sympathy from the factory owner.

And when Shi tried to enroll his son in school, every school rejected the application because of how the scarification had rendered his son's appearance.

Shi became frustrated and depressed. So, he decided to take matters into his own hands and home school the child. And over time, the goal of educating his own son soon turned into a mission to provide education for other children who had it tough.

Today, he is the principal of the Guang'ai Primary School, which provides an education for 103 students who would have most likely not have received an education otherwise.

Before founding the school, Shi worked as a truck driver and vegetable vendor. All of his income went towards providing the best standard of living he could for his family.

But Shi had always been disconcerted by the homeless children he saw starving in the streets, "because I had been in that situation", he says.

"I understand clearly that sense of loss and helplessness. They were friendless and broke, just like my son who endured the serious burns when he survived the explosion.

"But we were lucky to be offered help from charity committees and compassionate people.

"Their goodwill really moved me and encouraged me to continue with good deeds, which drove me to help more kids who were enduring difficulties."

So Shi began inviting these homeless children to receive an education under him. Seven children, in addition to his wife and son, were present when he opened a special school in a shabby courtyard in Shunyi County of Beijing in 2004.

"In the beginning, only my wife and I looked after the arrangements for meals and lodging. Li, a warmhearted woman, dealt with the teaching work," Shi recalled.

In the beginning, the bunkhouse was far from ideal.

There was no heater or air conditioner, so the children shivered through winters and sweated out summers. To top it all off, the roof leaked.

But things began looking up in December of 2006, when a neighboring bead shop owner volunteered to move the school into a rest home, which included a large family room, running water and heating.

However, the better things became, the more Shi seemed to struggle. Dwindling funds and a growing enrollment meant nobody, including him, was eating well. But the thing that really got under his skin was the disobedience of some of the boys.

Shi explains that most of the students at his school come from disadvantaged backgrounds; most are orphans, migrant workers' children and disabled children. They range from primary school to high school ages.

Many of them were deeply entrenched in vagabond lifestyles, and for them, old habits died hard.

"They often lack self-confidence and feel inferior. For example, three kids fought over a quilt, while two others practiced self-mutilation as an expression of their hostility toward society, and many others would steal or injure people when they felt upset," he explains.

At one point, a disheartened Shi considered giving up. But he quickly came to his senses and bitterly rebuked himself for even considering the idea.

He realized: "I'm the person who knows them well, and if I send them away, who else can save them? It's unjust."

The principal then created files for everyone according to their temperament and character, and told them, "You're the best and can be replaced by no one."

It was a great relief for Shi that eventually, the pupils began to throng to do chores, such as washing the dishes and cleaning the school. They were also started working on a garden.

Over the years, Shi and his family have earned a good reputation on their goodwill and courage. From simple beginnings, he and his wife, and a handful of volunteers, have clothed, fed and educated those children society wouldn't care for. Visitors were also impressed with how the children there radiated happiness, even though they had so little.

"Their living environments are not ideal, and neither are their clothes or funding, but they have strong wills. I hope they will repay society with indebted hearts," Shi says.

(China Daily 12/26/2007 page18)