The Story Behind Donating 3.3 Million Won to Mapo-gu Filial Piety Meal Service Instead of His Son?

Three Years After the Passing of Son (Late Kwon Taehoon), Father Kwon Kyunghwan Donates Filial Piety Meal Fund
Donor: "I Believe This Is What My Son, Who Respected Elders and Practiced Filial Piety, Wanted"
Park Gangsoo, Mayor of Mapo-gu: "This Noble Donation Increases Our Sense of Responsibility... Not a Single Won Will Be Wasted"

On the 19th, a special donation ceremony was held on the 9th floor of Mapo-gu Office. Mapo-gu (Mayor Park Gang-su) announced that resident Kwon Kyung-hwan from Gongdeok-dong donated a filial piety meal sponsorship fund on behalf of his son.

The donation ceremony was attended by about 10 people, including Kwon Kyung-hwan and his wife Kim Yoon-joo, Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, and the chairman of the Mapo Welfare Foundation.

Kwon Kyung-hwan revealed that April 19th marks exactly three years since his son, the late Kwon Tae-hoon, passed away, and he delivered 3.3 million won to the Mapo Welfare Foundation. The reason he donated 3.3 million won is because his son would have been 33 years old this year if he were alive.

Regarding his decision to donate to the filial piety meal program, Kwon Kyung-hwan said, “My son was a devoted son who carefully cared for his parents and respected elders during his lifetime. When I recently saw the ‘Filial Piety Meal Side Dish Factory’ being built, it reminded me a lot of him,” adding, “If he were alive, I believe he would have surely participated in good deeds for the elderly, so I decided to donate.”

The late Kwon Tae-hoon lived in Mapo-gu and diligently operated a restaurant and clothing business but passed away within about a month due to an unfortunate accident, according to his father, Mr. Kwon.

He continued, “The three years after my son’s death were very difficult physically and mentally, but today marks a turning point, and I have resolved to live brightly again with a smile,” and added, “I believe my son is watching over me happily from heaven,” moving those attending the ceremony.

Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, looking at a photo of the late Kwon Tae-hoon during his lifetime, said, “Seeing someone who has gone through such an indescribably painful experience return love to neighbors fills me with gratitude but also weighs heavily on my heart,” and added, “We will honor the noble wishes of the parents and make sure not to waste a single won of the donation, using it well for the operation of the filial piety meal program.”

The Mapo-gu resident participation filial piety meal program provides warm lunches six days a week to seniors aged 75 and older. It is a resident participation project that covers part of the project costs through residents’ sponsorships.

On the 15th, the large-scale cooking facility called the ‘Filial Piety Meal Side Dish Factory’ opened, allowing about 500 additional elderly living alone to use the filial piety meal service. The district plans to expand the number of users to 1,500 by the second half of the year.

The district expects that the empathy and participation of local residents like donor Kwon Kyung-hwan will be a great driving force for the future promotion of the filial piety meal project.