Believing that "Businessmen should not only contribute to the prosperity of society but should also assume the responsibility of stimulating educational growth and cultural development," Hong Chien-chuan, chairman of the National Electric Appliance Sales Co., and his four sons established Hong's Foundation for Education and Culture (HFEC) in November, 1971. Celia Hong, Hong's daughter-in-law, is responsible for the administration of the Foundation. Fifteen years ago, when Celia was a student at the Department of History in the National Taiwan University, she wanted to become a high school teacher after graduation. But she met Hong Min-long, son of Hong Chien-chuan, and married him while she was studying education in the United States for a master's degree. She thus came back to Taiwan a millionaire's daughter-in-law. With Hong's wealth to support her, Celia was able to make a bigger contribution to society by dedicating herself to educational and cultural activities. One bright afternoon, I went to Hong's Audio-Visual Library on Chung Hwa Road, Taipei to visit Celia. As I stepped into the second floor apartment, laughter and the cries of children rang out. In the reading room, I saw many children sitting on the carpet, reading in rapt attention. Some were lying flat on the ground, reading and sharing the enjoyment of their books with their companions. An open shelf system is adopted to encourage children to take books and magazines to read. When they encounter problems, they can look up words in the dictionaries and encyclopedias to find the answers. I told Celia Hong that this is a heaven for children who enjoy reading when I met this delicate but determined woman in her office. She told me that she used to enjoy reading in libraries when she was studying in the United States. As a result, she decided to establish the Hong's Audio-Visual Library after she returned to Taiwan, with the aim of providing an ideal environment for children's mental development by cultivating their interest in reading, and introducing new ideas and experiences through audio-visual aids. As well as the children's reading room, Hong's Audio-Visual Library has on the first floor an exhibition center which shows the latest audiovisual aids and means of instruction. On the third floor, there is an audiovisual room, a reading room and two music research rooms. With its Hi-Fi equipment and video recording system, the audio-visual room is open for the public to listen to music or watch movies. Books and magazines on music and audio-visual development in Chinese, English, and Japanese are available in the reading room. The music research rooms are also provided with Hi-Fi equipment and tape recorders so that students and experts can indulge in research work or compose music. On the fifth floor, there are a music room and a video room. The music room is equipped with a quality Hi-Fi stereo system to allow music lovers to appreciate music played in ideal acoustical conditions. Tape recorders, TV playbacks and monitors, 8mm. and 16mm. projectors, and slide projectors are available in the video room. Another achievement of Hong's Foundation has been the publication of the "Book Review and Bibliography" from September 1972 as a bimonthly magazine. So far 62 issues have been brought out. Celia Hong said the Foundation established this non-profit magazine to promote objective and fair criticism and elevate readers' awareness. Books recommended by the "Book Review and Bibliography" are meant to stimulate people to respect learning and persuade them to develop an interest in new ideas. In order to encourage further publication of children's books dealing with Chinese tradition, and to encourage up-and-coming authors of children's literature, Hong's Literary Award was established in 1974. In presenting this award, great attention is paid to the originality and contents of children's books. In 1977, the award was cited by the Ministry of Education for its excellent contributions to children's education. The saying "What you take from society should be used for the public welfare," is obviously the basis of the philosophy of the Hong's Foundation in its promotion of education and culture.

Mrs. Hong at work.

Children listen to the teacher's story in rapt attention.

Mrs. Hong inspects the general working conditions and exchanges views with employees.

Mrs. Hong's night lessons. She always keeps herself abreast of the latest developments in knowledge.

Mrs. Hong relaxes with her children.