"For Neighbors Harder Off Than Me..." Nowon-gu Continues Warm Donations to Overcome the Cold

A low-income resident in their 60s living in Wolgye-dong saved disability pension for 20 years and raised 10 million KRW donation... Donor delivers funds to Wolgye 2-dong Community Center saying "Please use it for local people in need"... Nowon-gu runs 2022 Warm Winter Fundraising Campaign until Feb 14, aiming to raise 2.8 billion KRW

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] On the 6th, shortly after the dawn of the Year of the Black Tiger, warm-hearted news that made people forget the cold came from Wolgye 2-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul.

Mr. Seo, a low-income resident living in Wolgye 2-dong, Nowon-gu, donated 10 million won in neighbor-helping funds to the local community center, asking that it be used to assist neighbors in need.

In his 60s, Mr. Seo became disabled due to an accident in his childhood and became a recipient of government assistance. He lives in a two-person household with his son who has an intellectual disability, currently sustaining their livelihood with about 750,000 won per month in basic living benefits and a small disability pension.

Believing that the money he receives is precious tax money from the people, Mr. Seo has lived a frugal life. He uses only the basic living benefits for living expenses and has steadily saved his disability pension for 20 years to prepare the donation fund.

Mr. Seo expressed his intention to donate, saying, “I have always been grateful as I have lived with the help of the state until now. I have prepared for a long time because I want to help neighbors who suddenly face difficulties like me, so please use this meaningfully.”

Upon learning of this story, the head of Wolgye 2-dong and welfare officials visited Mr. Seo’s home and held several interviews, trying to dissuade him from donating by saying they would only accept his goodwill, but they could not break Mr. Seo’s will to do something meaningful for his neighbors during his lifetime.

The 10 million won donated by Mr. Seo will be delivered to the Community Chest of Korea as part of the ‘2022 Nowon-gu Warm Winter Campaign’ fund and will be used for the livelihood, medical care, housing, education, and emergency relief expenses of low-income residents such as basic livelihood recipients and near-poverty groups in the area.

In addition, warm hands from residents wishing to help their neighbors continue to reach out. Three young entrepreneurs who opened a Mom’s Touch in Wolgye 2-dong a year ago donated hamburger sets worth about 1 million won for children from single-parent and grandparent-headed families, recalling their own economically difficult childhoods despite struggling with business due to COVID-19.

Oh Seung-rok, mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “Although their circumstances are not abundant, their hearts thinking of neighbors who are more difficult than themselves are very precious and appreciated. We will carefully ensure that the donations are delivered to those in need according to the donors’ wishes and create a warm Nowon full of neighborly love.”

Nowon-gu is collecting donations for the 2022 Warm Winter Campaign until February 14. The target amount for this year is 2.8 billion won, and as of January 14, about 2.332 billion won has been raised.

Individuals, groups, and companies wishing to participate in the ‘2022 Warm Winter Campaign’ can deposit funds into the Community Chest of Korea’s dedicated Nowon-gu account or apply through the Nowon-gu Office Welfare Policy Division or the 19 local community centers.

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