Zhang Baoyan (L) and Qin Yanyou (R), a couple devoted to reuniting lost children with their family members, are honored with the Touching China award, on February 14. [China Central Television]

Zhang Baoyan and Qin Yanyou, an ordinary couple from northeast China's Jilin Province, were honored with the Touching China award at a ceremony broadcast on February 14, in recognition of their devotion to running a website that helps lost children return home.

Since its launch in 2007, the website baobeihuijia.com has played a key role in reuniting 1,400 young persons with their families after they had been kidnapped, trafficked or mislaid.

The idea of establishing such a website came from a personal experience. The couple's son once got lost in a shopping mall, and then he was found. Still, the pain and panic during the short period made Zhang think about the suffering of parents whose children have been kidnapped or otherwise separated from them accidentally.

Thinking over and over again, Zhang and her husband started running the website and spent all their family savings on it. They often work late, sitting before their computer for fear of missing any information. They keep an eye on some 200 chat groups and updates, while answering phone inquiries and replying to messages.

Nevertheless, their initial efforts failed to attract much attention, and even drew skepticism and doubt. To all these, the couple said their goal was simple and even having just one child found meant success to them.

Luckily, more and more people have joined Zhang and her husband in the scheme, with the number of volunteers rising to over 170,000 around the country. The rate of successful searches and family reunions has also been increasing, from finding one kid a month at the very beginning to the current rate of one every two days, thanks to the expanding team.

Now there are still 40,000 people anxious to find their family members through the website, pressing Zhang and her husband to keep going without any letup.

"Each of the requests for finding family members has been attended to by volunteers. As long as we do not give up, there will be hope," said Zhang.

The Touching China award was launched in 2002. It aims to select and honor people who have dedicated themselves to good deeds and moved the Chinese public. So far, the award has been presented to over 160 persons by China Central Television (CCTV), the country's largest state-run broadcaster.

(Source: Xinhua/Translated and edited by Women of China)

Editor: Eileen Cheng(Women of China)