Several Kuliang Friends including Elyn MacInnis and Gail Harris, came all the way from the United States to Fuzhou city on June 20, to participate in the 2024 "Bond with Kuliang" China-U.S. Youth Festival. They revisited the old places, remembered history, and talked about friendship together.

Gail Harris, a descendant of the American missionary Harry Russell Caldwell, has been deeply influenced by the family and has a profound affection for the villa where her grandfather and mother used to passing the summer holidays. She sighed that the rough stone exterior walls of the villa are still strong, as if witnessing the hundred years of changes in the family. On the photo wall of the villa hang many photos of her family, including her grandfather, mother, and a photo of her when she was seven years old in Kuliang. They bring back a lot of memories for her.

Gail Harris (right) has a profound affection for the villa where her grandfather and mother used to passing the summer holidays. [Photo provided to bondwithkuliang.org.cn]

She also shared the family's connection with Kuliang, especially the family memories carried by the villa and its tennis court, as well as the glory of her father in tennis matches. A hundred years ago, there were many tennis courts in Kuliang, and the annual tennis competition was a grand event. When she saw the tennis court, she couldn't help but take out a yellowed photo of her father winning the championship in the Kuliang tennis competition.

Elyn MacInnis found the ruins of the MacInnis family villa near the top of Kuliang, and she was extremely excited. She said that this was the place she and her husband Peter MacInnis had always remembered, and now she finally found a sense of belonging to this "Chinese hometown." She also talked about the mysterious connection between the family and China, as well as her appreciation as a fourth-generation inheritor of the friendship with Kuling.

Elyn MacInnis found the ruins of the MacInnis family villa near the top of Kuliang. [Photo provided to bondwithkuliang.org.cn]

The MacInnis family has had a deep connection with China for three generations, making significant contributions to promoting cultural exchanges between China and the United States. Elyn said that the Chinese servant of the MacInnis family once gave baby Peter a pair of small red shoes. Her daughters both wore these small red shoes when they were young, and now her 1-and-a-half-year-old grandson wears them as well. Like the small red shoes, she will pass down the friendship of Kuliang from generation to generation.

Through their first-hand experience, they have demonstrated the important position of Kuliang in cultural exchanges, as well as the precious and enduring friendship that transcends national borders. As communication deepens, this friendship will continue to be passed on, becoming a valuable asset for friendly exchanges between the people of China and the United States.