From: Melrose. Aliases Include the following: The Reverend, Class A Nutjob, Jesus Freak, Person Who Sings George Jones' "He Stopped Loving Her Today" over and over and over until finally being told to shut the F up or risk being sodomized with a flagpole, Benji Bear (although this moniker's usage is used only by someone who has been indentified simply as TBH).
In re to: An effort to offer a glimpse of the goodness of people in an otherwise lost and degenerative world. An additional note: there will be a test at the end of this post.
Cut and pasted from the Atlanta Urinal and Constipation, Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008.
Immigrants who caught fugitive donate reward, get surprise
People touched by their actions raise $7,000 for the captors.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 04/22/08
Tuesday's press conference in Chamblee had the expected heroes: Chinese immigrants who lured an international fugitive into an apartment, hog-tied him and called police.
And there was the reward: $10,000.
Only this turns out to be a story of two good deeds. And, as the reluctant heroes were surprised to learn Tuesday, two rewards.
Superintendent Sandra Manderson, the New Zealand Police representative in the United States, was in charge of the official check. She handed the $10,000 to a beaming Gui Sen Wu, Dong Shun Li and Xin Bao Li at a small ceremony inside the Chamblee Police Department. The other half of the "Chamblee Six" have either moved out of state or were working Tuesday.
Manderson, with the help of an interpreter, thanked the scrappy band of Mandarin-speaking chefs and deliverymen for the courage and integrity they showed in ending the five-month manhunt for Nai Yin Xue. The 53-year-old fugitive had sparked international outrage for allegedly murdering his wife in New Zealand, abandoning their 3-year-old at an Australian train station and fleeing to America.
"You took it upon yourself to do the right thing," Manderson said. "... We love you in New Zealand."
Video cameras caught Xue ditching his daughter, known as "Pumpkin" for the brand of clothing she wore, at a Melbourne train station, then giving a double thumbs up as he passed through metal detectors at the airport in September. Police later found the body of Xue's wife - Pumpkin's mother - in the trunk of a car outside the family's Auckland, New Zealand, home.
The Chamblee Six learned of the case in February, from an article in a Chinese-language newspaper. They recognized the man striking a kung fu pose in the accompanying photo, a self-described martial arts expert living in nearby Doraville.
After a language barrier foiled several attempts to tell police about the man who called himself "Mr. Tang," the six took matters into their own hands. They invited him into the Shallowford Arms apartment with the promise of starting a massage business together. Instead, they hog-tied him with two belts, a pair of pants and blanket. Twice featured on "America's Most Wanted," Xue had been nabbed by folks who'd never seen the show. And this time he made the job easy for police, who discovered he was still carrying his New Zealand ID.
But what touched many about the capture was what the immigrants - who earn little more than minimum wage and support family back in China - did after learning of the reward from New Zealand police. They wrote up a contract agreeing to give $2,000 to an ailing friend. The other $8,000, they decided, should go to that little orphan named Pumpkin.
Wu, who wore a city of Chamblee pin on his sweater vest Tuesday, reiterated that commitment to Manderson, asking for her help in wiring the money to Pumpkin. "Well done," Manderson said, urging them to spend a little on themselves. "Fantastic."
Wu nodded repeatedly and thanked her for the kind words. But he said he didn't understand why they needed special recognition. "We did," he said through an interpreter, "what any American would do."
Watching from the audience was Lever Stewart, an Atlanta CEO who is active in several child-focused charities. He is among roughly a dozen people who, after reading of the Chamblee Six's generosity last month, decided to raise money for them. When learning that two of them had nowhere to live, Stewart put down a $500 deposit for an apartment.
"To take such a big sum and give it right back to the orphan," Stewart said, shaking his head. "They had no money."
Tuesday Wu and the others learned that donations from Stewart and others moved by their story had reached at least $7,000. "From the bottom of our hearts," Wu said, "we express our deep gratitude to our American friends who donated to us."
The search for justice touched three continents and, in the end, so did the just rewards.
THE STORY SO FAR
Previously: Six Chinese immigrants capture international fugitive Nai Yin Xue in a Chamblee apartment and are celebrated as heroes in New Zealand, where Xue is charged with murdering his wife and abandoning their 3-year-old daughter, Pumpkin. Upon learning of a $10,000 reward, the Chamblee Six decide to give the lion's share to Pumpkin, now an orphan living with her grandmother in China.
The latest: The heroes officially received their reward money Tuesday and prepared to wire $8,000 of it to Pumpkin. The remainder, they say, will go to an ailing friend.
What's next: Metro Atlantans who read of Chamblee Six's generosity have raised $7,000 and counting, and plan to give them the money
in coming days. Xue, meanwhile, is set to go on trial early next year for murder.
AND NOW THE TEST: What have you done lately for the common good of your fellow inhabitants of Planet Earth? Melrose, it has been revealed, will
participate with other members of his church in cutting the grass of thirteen members of his church who are elderly and cannot do so themselves. Melrose has
been quoted as saying "Do not offer me any accolades for it is not my glory that has been revealed but the glory of God Almighty. Additionally, I have
received more in return, by far, than what I gave and I encourage everyone to give themselves away, in even the smallest way, in an effort to combat the, at
times, overwhelming crappiness of this world."
Go ahead. Give it a shot. Pay the toll on GA 400 with a fiver and tell the teller to let the next nine people through for free (generosity
is contagious and uplifting to all). Babysit your neighbor's kids for a couple hours so that she, as a single mom, who has no time for herself, can go and
get her hair styled without having to referee her two boys. Fix a flat for someone. Plunk down a few bucks or more if you can afford it to your local humane
society. Clean out your closets and donate still wearable clothes to the Salvation Army or Goodwill or The Disabled American Veterans (Google them for
donation locations). Spend a few hours at or donate a Kroger bag or two to your local homeless shelter. Go ahead and sponsor a child in a land far away or
even in your own backyard (WorldVision is an excellent choice, 92% of all donated funds go directly to impoverished area around the world). Visit with seniors
at retirement communities, especially if you have a dog. The elderly really appreciate being licked in the face by our canine friends. It makes up for, in
some small degree, the lack of expressed love that is not extended by their famiies anymore.
Like I said, give it a shot. The rewards will surpass your efforts every time. I guarantee it. Besides, where else can you, for a small effort or just a few
bucks, make a difference in someone else's life. Forget politics and ignore the "inconvenience" you may feel initially. Deep down, people
really do want to help others and as it is often the case, others may have helped you along at some time in your life. It's time to give something back.
Make it today and then plan to do it again soon.
With kindest regards,
Melrose, Servant to those who need a hand up, not a hand out.
