"Village's Chief" Seventh Child Born to 50 Residents in the Countryside

News of the birth of Ryu Sara in Gailli, Sabuk, Chuncheon
Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon, personally delivers a congratulatory handwritten letter
Il Dong Foodis also promises a year's supply of formula milk

The sound of a baby crying echoed through Gail-ri, Sabuk-myeon, Chuncheon-si, Gangwon-do, where 50 residents live. On the 10th, Ms. Ryu Sara (44) gave birth to a healthy baby boy weighing 3.8 kg, becoming a mother of seven children.

Ryu's husband, Jeon Dong-hoon (51), said, "The children were very worried about their mother's health when they heard the news of the seventh pregnancy," adding, "Now they are so happy that they are even trying to name the youngest sibling."

Seong-woo, the seventh child of the couple Jeon Dong-hoon and Ryu Sa-ra.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Upon hearing the couple's childbirth news, Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Province, sent a handwritten letter congratulating them on the birth of their son. Governor Kim wrote, "Congratulations on the birth of your seventh beloved child, the blessing of Chuncheon Gail Village, the joy of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, Seong-woo. I sincerely hope Seong-woo grows up healthy and comes to visit the provincial office holding his mother and father's hands."

The province is discussing scholarship benefits for the children with the Office of Education. They are also reviewing support plans such as home repairs and rental housing with the Housing Welfare Self-Support Center and Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH).

Twenty-nine heads of major institutions in the province agreed to purchase 10 million won worth of potato bread from the bakery the couple started operating after moving to Gail Village in 2006.

Governor Kim, Kwon Hyuk-yeol, Chairman of the Provincial Council, Shin Kyung-ho, Superintendent of Education, Bu Sang-jun, Chief Judge of Chuncheon District Court, Ye Se-min, Chief Prosecutor of Chuncheon District Prosecutors' Office, Kim Do-hyung, Chief of Provincial Police Agency, Kim Heon-young, President of Kangwon National University, Lee Joo-han, President of Chuncheon National University of Education, Kim Jeong-hwan, Director of Wonju Regional Environmental Office, and Oh Seung-jae, President of the Provincial Development Corporation, all participated in purchasing the potato bread.

Yuk Dong-han, Mayor of Chuncheon, also personally called the couple to congratulate them on the birth of their seventh child.

Il-dong Foodis in the Geodu Agricultural and Industrial Complex in Chuncheon promised to supply the baby's formula for one year.

The couple plans to register the birth of their seventh child on the morning of the 17th at the Sabuk-myeon Administrative Welfare Center Civil Service Office. After completing the birth registration, they will attend a birth celebration ceremony with the township head and representatives from Il-dong Foodis.

Governor Kim said, "In these times of a serious low birthrate crisis, the birth of a seventh child in Gangwon is a great blessing and joy," adding, "We will do our utmost to help the child grow up healthy. We will strengthen medical, childbirth, and childcare policies."

Meanwhile, to overcome the low birthrate, the province relaxed the support criteria for multiple children from three to two last year. Basic childcare allowances are also provided for children under eight years old.

Additionally, projects such as the 'Safe Stay Service,' which allows mothers to stay from six weeks before the expected delivery date until three days after childbirth, special discount cards for multiple children, and university tuition support are being implemented.

Chuncheon City, which is promoting the 'Campaign to Reach a Population of 300,000,' also supports pregnant women by providing folic acid and iron supplements and breast pump rentals.

After childbirth, families can receive support such as the First Meeting Voucher (2 million won points), 500,000 won for postpartum care, and costs for 18 types of national vaccinations. There are also childcare support benefits totaling about 1 million won per month, including a 700,000 won parental allowance, a 200,000 won basic childcare allowance from Gangwon Province, and a 100,000 won child allowance.