Former CIP participants donate surgical masks to friends and hosts

The West Virginia Council of International Programs (WVCIP) recognizes that friendship, understanding and peace are created through cross-cultural experiences.

WVCIP provides international participants with personalized opportunities for professional development and integration into community life while providing opportunities for U.S. citizens to experience and understand other cultures. All the participants, while they work in the U.S. for several months, stay with host families, becoming a part of that family. The current pandemic provided a backdrop for former CIP participants to demonstrate their commitment to international peace, good will and friendship.

It was this commitment and friendship that motivated Huaxia Liu, a Chinese medical professional, to help her Morgantown friends. Liu, a participant from 2013, learned of the need for masks at WVU Hospital and from friends in Morgantown. She got together with other former Chinese CIP participants, most of them former participants employed at the Taisan Medical University and the Taisan Vocational Nursing College, to donate masks to their CIP friends. Huaxia Liu sent the masks to Li Dunn, former WVCIP coordinator, who lives in Morgantown, to distribute the masks.

Huaxia Liu said in a note; “We wish the American friends will get through the pandemic!”

Wang Jing, another former CIP participant and Emergency Medicine nurse, noted, “I checked the news every day about the situation in your area, and we knew your country is short of surgical masks in some areas so School of Nursing from our college mailed some masks to the School of Nursing of West Virginia University.” She added “I hope the situation in your area will be better soon! ”

WVCIP members and friends are pleased and proud that friends through the program have not forgotten their friends in West Virginia.

As one WVCIP member commented, “This is so awesome and so sweet! I’m very proud to be a member of the WVCIP Family.” And another member said, “That helps to bring our poor world together — to share and care for us all.”

Paula Martinelli, WVCIP president, thanked Huaxia Liu, MingHua Han, Wen Lu, Xia Sun (Sunshine), Xiaolie Wang (Lily), Lei Li and Jing Wang, who sent the masks.