Seongbuk-gu Jongam-dong Chuseok Celebration: Sharing 'Love Gift Packages' with Seniors

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] On the 21st, ahead of Chuseok, the Jongam-dong Community Service Center in Seongbuk-gu (Mayor Lee Seung-ro) hosted a Chuseok gift package sharing event for the elderly, organized by the Jongam-dong Community Social Security Council (Chairman Jung Se-kyun).

The gift packages, composed with 1.5 million KRW supported by the council, contained various food items such as kimchi and ready-to-eat meals. Additionally, masks, hand sanitizers, dehumidifiers, wet wipes, and pain relief patches for COVID-19 prevention were delivered along with heartfelt letters to 70 underprivileged elderly households in the district.

Residents aimed to convey the love of neighbors to socially isolated elderly who would spend the holiday more lonely than usual due to strengthened social distancing measures.

On that day, Seongbuk-gu Mayor Lee Seung-ro rolled up his sleeves and joined the gift wrapping team. The mayor said, “Due to COVID-19 related tasks, I hadn’t felt the Chuseok holiday approaching, but coming here made me realize that the holiday is near,” adding, “Although family gatherings are limited this holiday to maintain distancing, I hope this can be an opportunity to revive the meaning of the local community by being together with neighbors around us.” He also urged continuous sharing.

The sharing activities in Jongam-dong continue until before Chuseok. On the 23rd, the resident community ‘Nanum Iut’ (Sharing Neighbors), led by Chairman Choi Pil-geum, who is engaged in neighbor care activities in Jongam-dong, delivered daily necessities packages to elderly households.

Jongam-dong elderly resident Yoo (81), who received the sharing package containing food items such as gochujang (red chili paste), canola oil, traditional Korean sweets (hangwa), and protective supplies like masks, said, “I haven’t been able to go outside much lately and have been feeling very depressed, but neighbors came to visit, listened to me, and gave me gifts, so I feel much better.”

Donations continued from churches struggling with restrictions on in-person worship. On the morning of the 25th, the Jongam-dong Church Association (Chairman Park Jung-yong) delivered 100 bags of 10kg white rice to the community service center to support low-income families in the area, adding warmth to the sharing efforts. Prior to this, Jongam First Church also prepared 50 food gift sets as holiday presents for the elderly and delivered them to the district office.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.