(Minghui.org) On New Year's eve, practitioners who go to tourist destinations in New York City to tell people what Falun Gong really is and how brutal the persecution is in China sent New Year greetings to Master Li Hongzhi.

Below are a few stories they wanted to share.

Tour Guide: “Can I give you a hug?”

Practitioners set up a booth in front of Rockefeller Center on Fifth Avenue last June. On a stormy August day, a group of Chinese tourists were stuck in the building. Although the tour guide urged them to get on the bus, nobody moved.

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Li Xiurong, who worked at the booth, had an umbrella. She walked with the tourists one by one to their bus under her umbrella. When the wind broke the umbrella, she covered the tourists with her clothes.

The bus started to pull away and then stopped. The tour guide jumped off and asked Ms. Li, “M'am, can I give you a hug? From now on, I will look at Falun Gong differently.”

Practitioners at Rockefeller Center wish Master Li a happy New Year.

Tell Everybody about the Beauty of Falun Gong

The headquarters of the United Nations is a very popular tourist destination in New York City. Falun Gong practitioners have held regular events there for many years, telling everybody they can what has been happening in China.

It takes Ms. Tan Guijuan one hour on a bus to get there every day. Her job is to set up the display boards. “I will come here every day until the persecution in China ends,” she said.

Practitioners at the United Nations headquarters in New York wish Master Li a happy New Year.

Practitioners also hand out informational materials in front of the Chinese consulate. Many Chinese have been deceived by the communist party's propaganda. They usually refuse to listen to what the practitioners have to say and even curse them.

A Chinese man with an umbrella once hit practitioner Ms. Wang Sufen. Ms. Wang said, “These people don't know the truth. I feel sorry for them. I want to wake them up with compassion. I believe that, eventually, righteousness will overcome evil.

“I am happy to see that many Chinese do want to talk to us. Some of them also want to take up the practice.”

Practitioners hold banners in front of the Chinese consulate.

Practitioners also have booths in Times Square and at the Empire State Building. One day, a family from Nepal stopped at their booth in Times Square. They talked to practitioners for a long time. Practitioner Ms. Hua Weiqun gave each of them a hand-made paper lotus flower, which in the Chinese culture is a symbol of purity. The 70-year-old mother held the flower against her forehead and chest and bowed to the practitioners.

A few days later, Ms. Hua received an email from the son of the family, who was already back in Nepal. He sent Ms. Hua the pictures they took together. He said the family felt lucky to run into Falun Gong practitioners in the Big Apple and that they would start practicing themselves.

Practitioners at Times Square and the Empire State Building wish Master Li a happy New Year.

A Smile for Every Chinese Tourist

Tourist boats to the Statue of Liberty stop at harbors 15 and 17 on the East River. Practitioners have gone there every day for 11 years. Some hold banners, some hand out flyers, and some talk to the tourists. Many Chinese tourists have expressed their respect for the practitioners' determination.

At the Chinatowns in Manhattan and Flushing, people can also see practitioners every day.

Practitioner Ms. Hong had stomach cancer and other bone and liver diseases. All her health problems disappeared soon after she started to practice Falun Gong in 1996. Ms. Hong wants to share the message of Falun Gong with everybody so that more people can benefit from it.

Practitioner Yang Xiaoping said, “We have all benefited from Falun Gong physically and spiritually.”

Professor Zhang Jingrong said, “We want to tell people what Falun Gong really is and let people see for themselves who is righteous and who is evil.”

Many people in Chinatown have told practitioners, “You are the only hope for China. You are great!”

Practitioners in Flushing wish Master Li a happy New Year.