[First Batch of Distinguished Alumni] Ning Songkai: Spread His Boundless Love with Kindness and Benevolence

2021-12-23

Personal Profile: Ning Songkai, male, an alumnus in the major of Marketing in Class 1996 in HUTB. Since graduation, he has been engaged in the food and drug manufacturing industry, and currently is the regional head of China National Medicines Co., Ltd. which is affiliated to China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation, the dean assistant of Guangdong Province Engineering Technology Research Institute of TCM, the chairman of Guangzhou Province Engineering Technology Committee of TCM Granules, and a co-initiator and standing director of Milli Charity Foundation, China’s renowned charity organization.

Shoulder moral obligations firmly and pursue higher after realizing dreams

Like many boys, Ning Songkai dreamed to be a soldier. To this end, he joined the army at an early age, tempering his will as a soldier and strengthening his patriotism as a common citizen. After getting out of the army, he became a policeman and made continuous contributions to people’s safety and peace. In 1996, he made a decision which changed his life - returning to school. It is the decision that forged life-long indissoluble bond between Ning Songkai and HUTB.

Mr. Ning said in an interview that: “I have different experiences with you, I returned to school after working in the real-world society, and then come back to the society after empowering myself with knowledge.” For the now-or-never learning opportunity, Ning made extraordinary efforts, like a traditional Chinese poet goes “Never mind to study from evening to midnight. It is just the time to fight.”

While at school, Mr. Ning studied desperately and was especially immersed in books on business administration and economics.

The harder you work, the luckier you are. Ning learned from Liu Siwei, Liu Tianxiang, Jiang Zhengfu and other outstanding teachers. The prestigious teachers helped him explore in the vast areas of unlimited knowledge; it not only expanded his knowledge scope but also inspired him, and laid a solid foundation for his success afterwards.

Inherit the TCM undertaking and carry forward the TCM culture

Mr. Ning’s life is a dense legend. He was a chivalrous man galloping across the battlefield, but became keenly interested in TCM.

In 2002, Mr. Ning joined Guangdong Yifang Parmaceutical Co., Ltd. TCM is a shining pearl passed down over thousands of years of China’s history. Yifang, as a leader in China’s TCM enterprises, has made remarkable contributions in fights against SARS and COVID-19 pandemics. Mr. Ning and his colleagues pursued innovations whilst carrying on traditions, and exerted all their energies especially in the process of TCM modernization; they put forward new ideas, bravely scaled new heights in science and technology, advanced courageously, and vitalized the subverted innovative product of “TCM granules” with traditional culture, and finally won the Second-class Prize for State Scientific and Technology Advancement Award in 2012 as a group, and were received by the Party and state leaders. This is the greatest honor in the field of China’s TCM manufacturing till now. At present, the industry output value scale is up to 30 billion Yuan, and Yifang, as the leader in the TCM granule industry, has participated in developing most of national industry standards.

Be grateful and give back to the alma mater

People are great because of dreams, and the society is beautiful because of love. Mr. Ning walks with the vow of great love.

In the symphony concert of “Beyond the Dream” held on 3 May, 2018 in the campus, Mr. Ning donated one million Yuan to HUTB for setting up the “Wanghan Overseas Quality Talent Scheme Fund”. On that very night, he posted in his WeChat Moment: “as a son, all I can say is that I just continue the undertakings of the elder generations; as a student, all I can say is that I just offer some humble effort; as a man, I can say responsibly that every penny I donated is clean and with body temperature, as I have sentiments and dreams. I am grateful to my alma mater and everyone!”

Since 1996, Mr. Ning has been committed to the public activities to assist impoverished students in Tibet, Xinjiang, Sichuan, Hunan, etc. He funded over 100 students with over 5 million Yuan only in Xinshao, Hunan. He takes the lead to drive the entire society to pay attention to the growth of poverty-stricken students, and held key posts in social charitable organizations, such as Wanjia Education Foundation, Xinshao County Wanjia Education Promotion Association, Xinshao County Grateful Make-A-Wish (Gan’en Yuanmeng) Foundation, Dongguan Milli Charity Service Center, etc. He, together with the social forces, funded over 600 students totally with the sum of around 15 million. Besides donating money and supplies, he turns his eyes on psychological health, physiological health, sexual assault prevention, and initiated the “Action to Protect Spring Buds”.

Mr. Ning said: “I don’t know where I will go in the future, but I clearly know where I am from”. I always keep the desire in mind that I want to give back to my alma maters and offer assistance in the teaching and educating cause.

In 2016, Mr. Ning donated 500 thousand Yuan to set up the “fund for Thanks to Outstanding Teachers” of HUTB; in 2018, he donated 1 million Yuan to set up the “Wanghan Overseas Quality Talent Scheme Fund”; in 2019, he donated 1 million Yuan to set up the “Wanghan Academician Education Fund”. Whilst fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic, he donated supplies and money worth over 600 thousand Yuan to help the university community overcome the difficulty.

Money and supplies donated by Mr. Ning is his devotion to his alma mater.

Keep improving his virtue and refining his achievements

By virtue of his outstanding achievements and prominent contributions to the philanthropy, Mr. Ning has been rated as “outstanding alumnus”.

We’ve been thinking about the key to his success, and whenever being asked, he only answers with a faint smile “I have a long way to go from success, but I am on the way to it.”

Speaking of the title of “outstanding alumnus”, Mr. Ning was a little shy as a child. “I am not worthy of it, and there are many fellows who outperform me, and it is my alma mater that favors me, and I want to say thanks to my alma mater!”

Having been in the workplace for years, Mr. Ning, as a senior, presented his earnest expectations to the current students: “You have more favorable learning conditions now, there are many book bars and reading rooms, you must read more and good books. With the social development and overall education improvement, the degree-centric era has gone. Civilization quality and competence will be one of the core competitiveness when you enter the society. To succeed occupationally, you need to be qualified persons. When you conduct yourself in a decent manner, it is more likely for you to meet your talent scouts who will guide you to achieve great occupational achievements in the future. Cultivate the self, regulate the family, govern the state, and then lead the world to peace. When you are approaching to success, you are cultivating your abilities to give back to the society and your alma maters, as Zhu Xi said, the ideologist of the Song Dynasty, ‘The river is always keeping clean, since there is inflowing water’.”