China grocery shop owner keeps shop light on at night for 13 years to make women feel safe

Kind ‘street light aunty’ keeps grocery shop lights on for 13 years to help women walk home safely

For 13 years, a grocery shop owner in central China has kept her store lights on all night long, offering comfort, safety, and kindness to those walking home in the dark.

Sun Meihua, 60, first opened her shop in 2012 in the old town of Changsha, Hunan province, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. Not long after, a group of young women told her that the light outside her store helped them feel safer when walking back late from work.

Since then, Sun has never turned the light off at night. She also extended her opening hours till 2am and has even walked scared girls home when needed.

Her selfless actions earned her the nickname “street light aunty” from locals.

“I just want to help those in need,” she said.

Offers free calls & spare keys too

Sun’s thoughtful gestures go far beyond keeping the lights on. She also moved her home landline into her shop to help seniors and children in her neighbourhood call their families.

Many seniors aren’t familiar with smartphones, and children are often not allowed to bring phones to school. So Sun lets them use her shop phone for free, said SCMP.

If a call doesn’t go through, Sun even helps by sending messages to the intended recipients.

Even though the phone gets worn out from constant use and has to be replaced yearly, Sun never complains.

On top of that, she keeps spare keys for her neighbours at no charge. One elderly woman shared that she always goes to Sun for help, saying, “I trust Meihua.”

Grocery shop auntie wants to give back to community that once helped her

According to SCMP, Sun and her husband have lived in the neighbourhood for over 20 years. In their earlier years, the couple struggled financially and relied on community assistance.

Now that life is more stable, Sun says she wants to repay the kindness she once received.

Online users have praised her consistency and generosity, SCMP reported.

“It’s easy to be a Good Samaritan once or twice, but it is not easy to do that for life,” one person wrote.

“This is a grocery store that gives out love for free,” another said.

Sun’s small shop may not be famous, but to the people in her community, it has become a beacon of light — both literally and figuratively.

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