Arts & Culture

Asphalt angels give hope to local children

Taiwan Angels riding on motorcycles  cruise through the streets of Sandimen Township, Pingtung County, Dec. 2006. (Photos by Matt Gibson)

• Publication Date：03/09/2007
• By  Matt Gibson

Dozens of oversized Harley Davidson motorcycles, driven by black leather-clad men and women wearing sunglasses, rumbled through Sandimen Township in Pingtung County early Dec. 24, 2006. They were led by Robert Lo, a stocky man wearing a crew cut and a T-shirt proclaiming on its back, "If you can read this, the bitch fell off." His customized Harley had pictures of skulls airbrushed on the gas tank.
In North America, such a caravan of Harley-Davidson-riding motorcyclists would normally instill fear in bystanders. Hell's Angels motorcycle gangs were catapulted into the national spotlight in the 1950s due to their reputation for going on long motorcycle "tours" across the United States and Canada on customized Harley Davidson motorcycles, throwing wild parties and engaging in a wide variety of criminal activities. Since then, motorcyclists on Harleys have come to symbolize modern-day outlaws, and residents of rural communities are usually dismayed when they find out a gang of bikers has chosen to visit their town.
This situation could not be more different for their Taiwanese counterparts. The Taiwan Angels--the Tainan chapter of the Taiwan Harley Davidson Owners Association--has been making four or five charitable tours for each of the last five years, delivering school supplies, shoes, clothes and toys to underprivileged children in remote villages and orphanages in Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties. The largest of these annual road trips are the Christmas "Tour for Toys" at the end of December and the Children's Day tour at the beginning of April. On these tours, the Angels donate around US$1,500 worth of goods to children of a chosen orphanage or village, as well as offering free haircuts and medical treatment. Previous Angels' trips have targeted Meilan and Meisan villages in Kaohsiung County, and the Puyen Orphanage in Pingtung City and the Liouguei Orphanage in Kaohsiung County. This year the isolated mountain community of Sandimen was selected.
Although founder Lo and his fellow motorcycle-enthusiast friends have been undertaking these charitable tours for more than half a decade, the Angels were not founded officially until 2003. Moreover, despite the superficial similarity, the group's name was not derived from that of the infamous North American bike gang. In fact, Lo explained, their name had two meanings: First, the bikers themselves represented angels bringing gifts and goodwill, and, second, the children to whom the gifts were given were Taiwan's angels. He recalled, "We rode out to the Liouguei Orphanage, but the children were still in church. I said, 'The angels have come, the angels have come. God sent the gifts.' When the children came out, I told the children, 'I'm not wealthy, but I try to help you. Remember this visit. When you grow up, you try to help somebody else.'"
Since then the group engaged in several fundraising activities, Lo said, from selling T-shirts and hot dogs at festivals to taking pledges on a tour across Switzerland and soliciting donations in return for rides on their motorcycles. Monies raised were used to support a variety of organizations, including schools, orphanages and charities for disabled people.
Nevertheless, according to Lo, it is he, or rather the pub he owns--the Cosby Saloon in Tainan--that donates around 70 percent of the funds used to purchase the gifts, while other members and private sponsors make up the remainder. Lo also solicits sponsors to donate goods to the tour. In the past, these have included McDonald's, the Life Bakery in Tainan and the Yao Bakery in Kaohsiung. Once the funds are obtained, Lo negotiates with factories for low prices on large quantities of school supplies, clothing and other goods. Then, along with his wife and children, he spends about three days organizing the tour and packing the goods.
Dr. Tu of Tainan, a regular on the tours, brings medical supplies with his assistants and gives on-the-spot checkups and medical care to children. Hairdressers also accompany the group to give free haircuts. In total, around 20 to 30 angels participate in each tour.
This year the Angels were joined by a Kaoshiung-based motorcycle club, to bring holiday cheer to the children of Wutai, Ali and Jilu, the last three villages in the mountains beyond Sandimen on Highway 24. This tour was one of their largest ever; with over 90 participants, they even outnumbered the people living in one of the three villages visited.
The Angels have increasingly focused their efforts on remote villages in recent years because, Lo pointed out, orphanages and organized charities received a great deal of attention, but the numerous mountain villages facing economic hardships were often overlooked. Lo said that life was difficult for the mostly aboriginal children living in remote villages. "The villages are very poor," he said. "There's no work, and it can be difficult to get supplies because slides wash out the road."
According to Tang Huei-ci, village head in Ali, most villagers were either government employees or temporary day workers who could only find sporadic employment. "You will see many very old people and very young people in these villages," said Lo, "because parents have gone to the city to work and left children with their grandparents. It's very sad."
Ironically, the reception the Angels got on this year's Christmas tour was less than enthusiastic. In Ali, which has more than 50 children under 12 years old, only about a dozen children showed up at the storefront where the group set up to disperse their gifts. The turnout in Wutai and Jilu were similar. When asked where all the people were, Lo explained, "They're in the church. I don't understand why. They're praying to God, but the angels are here."
Tang explained that at Christmas, most villagers attended the church of the Shengshan tribe because it had more activities than the local ones. This unfortunate conflict of scheduling forced the Angels to leave the goods with the local authorities to distribute later.
Tang stressed that he "really appreciated" the Angels' visits and that this year's visit was even better than previous ones. "Compared to last year, this time they gave the kids a lot of gifts, bread, shoes, clothes and jackets."
Ba Guei-wu, Jilu headman, suggested the group could be more effective by changing the timing of their visits. He said that visiting during the weeklong harvest festival at the beginning of August would ensure a better reception because many villagers who had moved to the city to work would return then. Ba added that because villagers and the local government spent a lot of money to fund the festival--around US$1,700--it was a time they could use some extra support.
Nevertheless, Ba also said that he was "very happy" with the Angels' visit and that the supplies were "exactly what we needed."
The Angels' next trip will be to Siwan Village in Pingtung County on April 1 for their annual Children's Day tour.

Copyright 2007 by Matt Gibson

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