A kindhearted Chinatown resident who helps pedestrians cross the road by holding an umbrella over them whenever it rains has won praise online.
The resident, a housewife who lives with her husband and daughters, has been spotted repeatedly escorting pedestrians who do not have umbrellas by shielding them with her own umbrella as they walk across a zebra crossing that is not sheltered.
Since there are covered walkways on both sides between the zebra crossing, many pedestrians choose not to open up their umbrellas and use them when they are crossing the road because the stretch of unsheltered road is so small.
Although this may not be a big deal for many pedestrians, it moved the housewife and prompted her to help pedestrians cross the stretch without getting wet.
According to the Chinese daily, the woman has made a habit of going downstairs from her apartment every day it rains to help pedestrians. She especially has a soft corner for women, children and senior citizens and has been spotted bringing more than one umbrella in her mission to help as many people as possible.
A Lianhe Zaobao visited the area last week when it was raining and noticed the woman escorting four individuals across the street over a half hour period. The woman, who was carrying a large green umbrella, was seen approaching pedestrians without umbrellas and offering to shield them from the rain as they made their way across the shelter-less street.
The reporter said that many pedestrians were pleasantly surprised by the woman’s gesture and accepted her offer. When they reach the other side of the street, the grateful pedestrians – many of whom were elderly – made sure to thank the good Samaritan.
The pedestrians also told the reporter that the woman’s kindheartedness made them feel warm. Netizens responding to her acts online also praised her for being so compassionate and generous to those in need.
The woman told the Chinese daily that she decided to embark on her mission after noticing pedestrians dash as fast as possible across the road to avoid getting wet during the rainy season last December.
One day, she saw four people – two older women, a young man and a child – slip and fall on the road during a half hour time period due to how slippery the road was when it was raining. This incident made the housewife decide to step up and help pedestrians whenever it rains heavily and she is available to assist.
She said: “I wanted to be a volunteer before but my child was still young and needed to be taken care of. Now that my child is older, I have more time, so I came down to help and it felt good.”