On June 19, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng gathered a diverse group of long-time and new American friends at the Chinese Embassy in Washington D.C. for a gathering centered on reconnecting and rebuilding grassroots bonds between the two nations. Attendees included figures from across different sectors of U.S.-China exchange: Ronald Sakolsky, a veteran supporter of China’s desertification control initiatives; Gail Chou, an educator who spent 12 years teaching in Luoyang, Henan Province; and Ryan Corkery and Angelie Melara, young participants in the “50,000 in five years” China-U.S. youth exchange program.
Opening the gathering, Ambassador Xie highlighted the historic significance of the recent China-U.S. summit held in Beijing, noting that the meeting laid out a new shared vision for bilateral relations and opened a fresh chapter for people-centered friendly engagement between the two countries.
“To deliver on the important consensus reached by our two presidents, and to renew the long-standing friendship between Chinese and American people, we must work together and step up with new collective contributions,” Xie told attendees. He offered three key guiding principles for advancing grassroots China-U.S. relations: prioritize small, concrete actions to turn high-level vision into tangible outcomes; encourage American friends who have experience in China to share their personal stories, helping more Americans understand the deep historical roots of people-to-people friendship between the two nations; and invest in nurturing a new generation of cross-cultural friendship envoys.
“Let us act on the important consensus between the two presidents, and renew friendship between the people of China and the U.S.,” Xie concluded his call to action.
Following the ambassador’s remarks, participating American guests shared their own deeply personal stories of connection to China, reflecting on the bonds that have shaped their perspectives and lives. Sakolsky spoke with evident affection as he recalled his decades of experiences traveling and working in China. “When I first visited China, all I wanted was to see the Terracotta Warriors, walk alongside the Yellow River and stand on the Great Wall — and truly live like a local Chinese person,” he said. “When I turned down a special treatment offer and chose to share a room with my Chinese colleagues on one trip, I knew I had truly become part of their community. I’m no celebrity; I’m just an ordinary teacher who wants to say thank you to China, and do whatever I can to give back out of gratitude.”
Calling the gathering a meaningful reunion of friends connected by shared memories of China, Sakolsky added that he is committed to advancing a new era of people-to-people and youth exchanges between the two countries.
Chou shared touching, intimate details of her 12 years living and working in China, saying “I feel homesick for China — it is my home away from home. The warmth and gratitude my Chinese students showed me will always stay with me, and never fail to touch my heart.”
Corkery, the young exchange participant, echoed the theme of small connections overcoming deep divides. “It’s the little, everyday moments that make it clear: even with language and cultural differences, there are universal things that bring us together, and those are the things we should keep our focus on,” he said.
Melara, another young participant who only spent 10 days in China as part of the exchange, noted that even her short stay reshaped her entire worldview. “It completely changed how I think about the world, and how I approach new ideas and different cultures,” she said.