The Story Behind Free Breakfasts

Published: Fall 2023

Author: Zhong Xiyue

The Chongde Compassion Station is a unique cabin located in the center of Rui’an City, where free breakfast is available every morning for anyone in need. It is in its tenth year of operation.

Zhang Xiaoying, the volunteer manager, stands out in the crowd with her capable short hair and powerful voice. “Starting at 7 a.m. every day, rain or shine,” she said, “it distributes more

than a thousand free loaves of bread and soy milk to diverse socially marginalized groups each morning, promoting the idea that virtue makes society more harmonious.” 

Zhang Xiaoying manages queuing discipline before breakfast distribution and informs recipients of recipe arrangements, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. [Photo/ Zhong Xiyue]

Zhang credits her ten years of dedication to the love of her own family, which she extends to

society. Her husband supports her, so they have a clear division of labor with one earning

money and the other doing charity. In addition to her volunteer work, she is a court-invited

mediator who specializes in family conflict resolution.

“People from diverse backgrounds, including teachers, doctors, and lawyers, volunteer, with a significant elderly presence,” Zhang noted. “Donors contribute food or money. Zhang Cheng, the owner of Yiming Food, has sponsored daily milk for years to spread kindness.”

The breakfast at Chongde Compassion Station has become increasingly diverse with societal support, including dumplings for the Dragon Boat Festival, mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and soup dumplings for the Winter Solstice.

A Volunteer distributes breakfast to a sanitation worker, consisting of three buns and a mooncake, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. [Photo/ Zhong Xiyue] 

The Chongde Compassion Station has seen an increasing number of new and familiar faces

over the past years. The breakfast recipients are mainly sanitation workers, the homeless, low- income earners, and others in need. Many of them transitioned to participants after receiving the gesture of kindness. Tong Qizhong, a 69-year-old sanitation worker, is one of them.

Red-waistcoat volunteers distribute bread and milk as a diverse crowd, including sanitation and construction workers, forms long queues, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. [Photo/ Zhong Xiyue] 

Tong has been in Rui’an for twenty years and is originally from Anhui province. “To be honest, I did not think about staying for so long before I came,” he said. “I still remember the first time I went to eat warm buns before work. People treat me like family, and I want to volunteer and give back.”

“It is a very different feeling to serve others, and I feel like I am a part of this city,” Tong said.

Tong not only volunteers but also donates brooms every month and gives money annually. He was also invited to the People’s Congress of Rui’an for his contribution, which encouraged him to do more good deeds.

“More and more young people have also joined recently,” Zhang said. The existence of the

Chongde Compassion Station will continue to facilitate the dissemination of benevolence in

the future.