Yeongdeok County's Volunteer Spirit Shines: Top Prize in "2025 Gyeongbuk Outstanding Volunteer City and County Evaluation"

Highly Praised for Systematic Wildfire Recovery and Disaster Response Volunteer Activities

Yeongdeok County, known as "the warmest city in Gyeongbuk," has finally reached the pinnacle of volunteerism.

On November 19, Yeongdeok County in Gyeongbuk Province received the top prize in the evaluation of outstanding volunteer cities and counties at the 2025 Gyeongbuk Volunteer Conference, held at the Yeongcheon City Gymnasium.

Yeongdeok County won the grand prize at the 2025 Gyeongbuk Volunteer Conference. Photo by Yeongdeok County

This evaluation was based on the achievements of the past year, with assessments in three categories: volunteer participation, volunteer activation, and civil servant volunteering. Seven detailed indicators were used, including achievements in promoting happy villages, the operation of the integrated volunteer support group, and examples of outstanding policies.

At this event, the Wooami Volunteer Group was recognized as an exemplary volunteer organization from Yeongdeok County. Additionally, Choi Mikyung from the Yeongdeok County branch of the Korean Red Cross and Lim Hyehyeon from the Yeongdeok Student Counseling Volunteers Association were selected as individual award recipients.

Notably, following the Gyeongbuk wildfire at the end of March, Yeongdeok County operated its Volunteer Center and Integrated Volunteer Support Group for 102 days, smoothly managing everything from on-site response to supporting the daily recovery of affected residents.

The county also effectively coordinated the placement of volunteers arriving from across the country and managed the distribution and oversight of supplies. Through the "Warmth Sharing Relay" campaign, Yeongdeok County contributed to spreading a culture of sharing and heightened social awareness for disaster victims, which was highly praised.

County Governor Kim Kwangyeol stated, "The honor of this award is thanks to the commitment and passion of all volunteers and the Volunteer Center working for a better society. Just as the active efforts of volunteers greatly aided the swift recovery of disaster victims during difficult times, we will continue to focus on promoting and supporting volunteerism to create a more livable and happy community together."

The Yeongdeok County Volunteer Center continues to spread positive influence by sharing experiences and know-how gained from wildfire response and recovery with other city and county volunteer centers and organizations, alongside volunteer activation projects such as the Warmth Sharing Relay and Happy Village initiatives.

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