Mrs. Kim Geon-hee Encourages Children with Heart Disease, Skipping the 'City of a Thousand Temples' Angkor Wat

Instead of Participating in the Spouse Program for World Leaders in Cambodia, Visiting Families of Children with Heart Disease
Visiting Eco-Friendly Recycling Company Smateria

First Lady Kim Keon-hee, wife of President Yoon Suk-yeol, visited the home of a child with a congenital heart disease in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on the 12th (local time) to check on the child's health condition. /

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 12th, First Lady Kim Keon-hee, who accompanied President Yoon Suk-yeol on his Southeast Asia tour, visited the home of a child with congenital heart disease living in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, to check on the child’s health and offer comfort.

Instead of visiting the 'City of Temples,' Angkor Wat, which Cambodia, the host country of ASEAN, had prepared as part of the spouses’ program for heads of state, Kim chose for the second day to encourage children with heart disease.

According to Lee Jae-myung, deputy spokesperson of the presidential office, First Lady Kim visited Hebron Medical Center and sought out a child who could not attend the meeting with children who had undergone heart surgery due to health reasons.

Deputy Spokesperson Lee added, "Upon hearing the news, First Lady Kim made a sudden visit to the child’s home this morning instead of participating in the spouses’ program arranged by the Cambodian side."

The child underwent heart surgery at Hebron Medical Center in 2018 but is in poor health and requires additional surgery, Deputy Spokesperson Lee said. Recently, the child underwent brain surgery and is recovering but suffers from poor nutrition due to financial hardship.

The child’s father passed away before the child was born, and both the mother and older brother are in poor health. The family is barely making a living with the care of the older brother’s wife, who works as a cleaner.

The child’s mother said, “Out of 12 children, we lost four due to poverty,” and requested help for her son’s health recovery.

Meeting the child, First Lady Kim said, "You can overcome this, right? Get healthy and let’s meet in Korea," making a pinky promise, and comforted the family by saying, "There is always hope. No matter what happens, don’t give up and stay strong."

Following this, First Lady Kim visited SMATERIA in Phnom Penh, a company that supports women’s career continuity and job creation through eco-friendly upcycling projects, as well as actively providing childcare benefits. The company manufactures bags and accessories using discarded fishing nets and other materials.

First Lady Kim met with employees and discussed SMATERIA’s welfare benefits aimed at supporting working mothers and preventing career breaks, as well as child care programs.

She emphasized the importance of care and support for women and children, saying, "SMATERIA means ‘transition,’ which not only refers to the transition to eco-friendliness but also to a shift in awareness regarding women’s jobs, working mothers, and the balance between work and family." The bag she carried during her visit was also a recycled leather bag made from apple peels.

Meanwhile, yesterday afternoon, First Lady Kim sent a handwritten congratulatory letter, birthday gifts, and a presidential watch to celebrate the first birthday of the quintuplets born in Korea for the first time in 34 years.

In her congratulatory letter, she wrote, "I hope the lives of the five children to unfold will be filled with deep family love, precious friendships, warm sharing and care among neighbors, free thoughts and challenges, and unforgettable precious experiences," and added, "I prepared wooden toys with the hope that the five children will grow up healthy and warm like sturdy, warm solid wood," celebrating their first birthday.

She also encouraged the parents, both active-duty army captains, for their hard work over the past year and wished them health and happiness. The couple expressed their gratitude, saying, "We will never forget today. We will continue to raise the five children with enthusiasm, fun, and happiness so that they grow up healthy and warm."

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