"Thank You for Taking Good Care of Our Children Throughout the Year"

[Seoul District News] Yeongdeungpo-gu Family Center Hosts Year-End Event Delivering Video Letters and Flower Bouquets to 160 Selected Stories for Neighbors, Friends, and Families & Park Seongmi Chosen as This Year's Outstanding Childcare Provider, Receiving Video Letter, Bouquet, and Appreciation Certificate on the 22nd ... Gangdong-gu Supports Warm Meals for Children at Risk of Food Insecurity Throughout Winter Break ... Gwangjin-gu Selected for Seoul Smart Senior Center Project, Operating 15 'Smart Senior Centers' with Unmanned Management Systems

Ceremony for Presenting a Certificate of Appreciation and a Flower Basket to Outstanding Idol Caregiver Park Seong-mi (left)

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Yeongdeungpo-gu (Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) is warming the cold winter by preparing a year-end event to express gratitude to loved ones.

Organized by the Yeongdeungpo-gu Family Center, this event offers an opportunity to gift video letters and bouquets made by participants to neighbors, friends, teachers, and family members. It has been operated since 2020 to promote communication and strengthen relationships even in non-face-to-face situations.

This year, under the theme "You, Me, and Us," various stories from local residents were collected from December 1 to 16. The submissions were filled with precious feelings that are usually hard to express, including thank-you messages to teachers who taught the joy of learning, encouragement for friends who had a tough year, and wishes for family blessings in the new year.

The center selected a total of 160 recipients from the submitted stories and delivered video letters created with QR codes and bouquets by December 22.

Notably, among this year's applicants were families using the center's "Childcare Service" and the caregivers themselves. One family, maintaining a steady relationship with a caregiver met through the "Childcare Service," applied with a story expressing gratitude to the teacher who fills the parenting gap with love and helps the child grow healthily.

Among many stories, caregiver Park Seong-mi, selected as the protagonist, has been actively assisting the families she is connected with and was chosen as an outstanding worker of the year. Receiving the video letter, bouquet, and certificate of appreciation through the center on December 22, Park Seong-mi said, "Thanks to the warm hearts and messages of support, I gained great courage," adding, "I will strive even harder to be a caregiver who dedicates herself to the child and family." (Photo)

Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, said, "I hope this year-end event prepared for the season brought warm emotions and healing to both the gift-givers and recipients," and added, "In the new year, we plan to operate various programs with the center to promote healthy and harmonious family relationships among residents, so we ask for your interest and participation."

Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Soo-hee) announced on the 26th that it plans to identify children at risk of food insecurity during the winter vacation and provide meal support.

The support targets children under 18 years old who are at risk of food insecurity due to poverty, family breakdown, and other reasons. Children over 18 attending high school are also included.

The district expanded the eligibility to apply not only to the children themselves but also to their families, neighbors, and local community welfare councils to actively discover children hidden in blind spots. Applications can be made anytime by visiting the nearest community service center.

Children selected for support will receive a Child Meal Card (Kkum Namu Card) usable at general restaurants and convenience stores within Seoul. By downloading the "Seoul Kkum Namu Card" app, users can check participating restaurants and card balances. The support amount is 8,000 KRW per meal, with a maximum daily usage of 24,000 KRW.

Jung Hye-jung, Director of the Child and Youth Division, said, "Even children who eat lunch at school during the semester often skip meals during vacations due to parents' dual jobs and other circumstances," adding, "We will carefully manage and support so that growing children do not go hungry and have a warm winter vacation."

Gwangjin-gu (Mayor Kim Kyung-ho) will operate a ‘Smart Senior Center’ using IoT and digital technology from next year, providing seniors with a safe unmanned operation system and practical digital education.

This project is promoted as Gwangjin-gu was selected as a leading autonomous district in the facility environment improvement category in Seoul’s ‘Smart Senior Center Construction Project Contest.’ About 800 million KRW will be invested to build and operate various digital systems in 15 senior centers, including Daewon Senior Center in Junggok 4-dong.

The Smart Senior Center focuses on systematically supporting seniors’ smart retirement life by securing a safe activity space with minimal facility management burden through digital technology, and providing essential digital education and enjoyable leisure time in a rapidly changing world.

To this end, an unmanned operation system controllable from home is established, including access control, lighting management, safety control, and air quality management systems. Digital door locks, robot vacuum cleaners, and air purifiers are installed to support daily safety and health.

Especially, to bridge the digital gap that makes seniors feel overwhelmed by digital devices, kiosks are installed in the centers to provide continuous digital device learning. Smartphone and mobile banking education programs are carefully prepared to help seniors step into the digital world.

Seniors can freely use a multi-touch game table equipped with a large multi-touch display to enjoy videos and recreational activities for dementia prevention. They can also experience the joy of growing and harvesting fresh vegetables indoors year-round with an IoT smart farm that automatically supplies light, wind, and water and remotely controls temperature and lighting.

Kim Kyung-ho, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, "We started operating the Smart Senior Center to improve seniors’ digital accessibility and help them live healthier and richer retirement lives," adding, "We will continue to discover and promote various projects encompassing welfare, housing, jobs, education, and leisure to make Gwangjin-gu a better place for seniors to live."

Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is recruiting members for the ‘Gwanak Youth Network,’ who will collaboratively design and transform the region’s future as youth policy partners until January 9, 2023.

The youth population in Gwanak-gu accounts for 41.3% of the total population, the highest among local governments nationwide. Since the 8th local government administration, the district has fully utilized regional characteristics by establishing a ‘Youth Culture Bureau’ befitting the nation’s top youth city and is promoting policies to create a model for youth policy in basic local governments.

Launched in 2020 and now in its 4th term, the ‘Gwanak Youth Network’ is a governance body for public-private cooperation that reflects the voices of youth, the main agents of youth policy, and expands youth participation in policy-making.

Selected youth network members participate in four subcommittees?jobs, social participation, life stability, and culture & arts?to discover and propose agendas desired by youth, supporting social activities such as youth rights promotion, capacity building, and policy improvement.

They also engage in various youth community activities, including the ‘Youth Policy Academy’ to learn about agenda discovery and policy proposal processes, various forums and debates to seek solutions to their own challenges, and project activities to discover unique youth business models through networking with youth organizations in other regions or local resident groups.

Any youth aged 19 to 39 residing in Gwanak-gu or active in universities, workplaces, or youth organizations located in Gwanak-gu can apply.

The district will review submitted documents and select 22 members through comprehensive evaluation of voluntariness, relationships, and areas of interest, notifying them individually in January.

Youth wishing to participate can find detailed information on the Gwanak-gu website (News/Announcements). Application forms and documents can be submitted via email or fax to the Youth Policy Division’s network contact.

For more information, inquiries can be made to the Youth Exchange Team of the Youth Policy Division at Gwanak-gu Office.

An official said, "We hope participation in the Youth Network will be an opportunity for Gwanak youth to grow as proactive policy partners," adding, "We look forward to many enthusiastic youth who will joyfully communicate with their neighbors and help create a better Gwanak together."

Dongjak-gu (Mayor Park Il-ha) held the ‘20th Anniversary Ceremony of the Dongjak-gu Disabled Protection Workshop Vocational Rehabilitation’ on the 21st, awarding commendations to those who contributed to vocational rehabilitation for the disabled and the development of community welfare.

The ceremony was attended by about 150 people, including Mayor Park Il-ha, workers, disabled workers, and their families, and proceeded with facility activity introductions, the mayor’s congratulatory speech, and awards.

Mayor Park Il-ha congratulated the 20th anniversary and encouraged workers and disabled workers who contributed to enabling social and economic independence for the disabled.

The recipients of the Dongjak-gu Mayor’s commendation this time include 1 worker, 2 disabled workers, 4 volunteers, and 2 sponsors, totaling 9 people.

They are residents who contributed to regional development by supporting job training and social adaptation programs through the Dongjak-gu Disabled Protection Workshop to help disabled people become independent.

Among the awardees, outstanding employee Eun-ju Lee, a supervisor, has over 10 years of long-term service and contributed to stabilizing and growing the printing business in the early days of the workshop.

Also, sponsor Kang Tae-wook, CEO of the nonprofit organization Innobi, contributed to fulfilling cultural needs and emotional support for the disabled by organizing a performance team of domestic and international musicians to provide online art performance viewing opportunities for disabled people struggling due to COVID-19.

The district operates welfare projects such as vocational rehabilitation, counseling, and social adaptation programs for the disabled at the Dongjak-gu Disabled Protection Workshop and runs profit-making businesses through the production of products by severely disabled persons.

In the early days after opening, the number of disabled workers was 25, and sales were about 67 million KRW, but now annual sales exceed 3.6 billion KRW, and 43 disabled workers are protected and employed, contributing to job creation and wage increases for the disabled.

Mayor Park Il-ha said, "We will promote various welfare policies so that disabled and non-disabled people can live happily together in the community."