About 33,000 USD Donations to 17 Children Suffering From Heart Disease and Poverty

“It has been difficult for you to gather at this gym in hot summer. Oh, isn’t it summer now?”

On December 10, the Seongnam Gymnasium, where over 6,000 members gathered, was filled with laughter by the joke of Vocalist Yu-yeol. The 4th New Life Concert was held to help the children who were suffering from disease and poverty. Just as Yu-yeol said, the concert hall was filled with the warmth of love so it felt like summer even in December.

The New Life Concert, which was hosted by the New Life Welfare Foundation and sponsored by JoongAng Ilbo, started from p.m. 6.30 for about 3 hours including the donation delivery ceremony.

The New Life Welfare Foundation members were zealous for helping their unfortunate neighbors; they formed a queue two hours before the event and filled the seats to the fullest; some sat on the stairs and some stood on the aisles. Before starting the event, congratulatory video messages were presented; they were from the New Life Welfare Foundation Sponsor Chairman Lee Sun-jae, Gyeonggi Province Governor Son Hak-gyu, and Director of Bun-dang Jaeseng Hospital Yu Hui-tak. After that, the foundation promo video showed its volunteer service activities.

In the promo video, there appeared a Vietnamese child with heart disease. The child recovered his health after an operation by the help of the New Life Welfare Foundation. Seeing the Vietnamese mother looking at her child in pain with heartbreak, the mothers of children with heart disease or leukemia shed tears, as fellow sufferers.

At the donation delivery ceremony, the New Life Welfare Foundation delivered donations and gifts to their neighbors who had their own painful stories. A total of 45 million won (about 33 thousand USD) was delivered as medical expenses and living expenses to 17 children: two children with heart disease, four with leukemia, two with rare diseases and nine parentless households. Many figures of various social standings attended and congratulated this meaningful event: Song Pil-ho the Representative Director of the JoongAng Ilbo, Lee Yun-su, Choi Seong-jun, Koh Heung-gil and Im Tae-hui the Lawmakers in Seoungnam City, Kim Eul-dong the Grand National Party Lawmaker, Heo Un-na the President of Information and Communications University Korea, Son Byeong-su the Representative Director of Forbes Korea, Joanne Lee the Chief Director of the Women’s News, Choi Min the Doctor of Korea Institute for National Unification, Choi Ho the Chief Director of Open Society Cultural Research Institute. Cho Sun-hyeong the Millennium Democratic Party leader, and Lee Myeong-bak the Mayor of Seoul City sent congratulatory messages.

Chairwoman Zahng Gil-jah encouraged the members who were taking care of our unprivileged neighbors by saying, “Today’s concert has been prepared with love, and will be remembered as eternal beauty.” She comforted the children suffering from heart disease, leukemia and rare diseases and their parents as well as the parentless households, saying, “Do not lose hope.” The concert started with the New Life Children Choir’s beautiful songs.

After that, beautiful songs of a quartet and the performance of an orchestra, Children’s Pansori, “Heungboga,” and Samulnori made a concert hall full of excitement. The members waved the luminous sticks and their cell phones, responding to ardent singing of the members Kim Dong-wuk, Bae Gyeong-seop and Kim jae-hun, and of honorary members Yu Yeol and No Sa-yeon.

Dr. Cho Min from the Korea Institute for National Unification valued the foundation’s activities and the members’ enthusiasm, saying, “If you don’t have a special sense of duty, it is impossible to help others always.” The bright faces of the members, who left the concert hall, proved that small practice of love brings happiness to neighbors and ourselves as well.