Seongdong-gu Supports Vulnerable Elderly with Travel and Hobby Activities

Seongdong-gu Launches 'Hyo (Filial Piety) Love Senior Wish Fulfillment Project'
For Seniors Aged 70+ Receiving Basic Livelihood Benefits or in Lower Income Brackets
Supports Wish Fulfillment Such as Traveling, Treating Thankful Neighbors to Meals, and Hobbies
Volunteers Accompany Seniors Throughout the Wish Fulfillment Process and Support Video Production Including Photo Essays

Seongdong-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jung Won-oh) is continuing the ‘Seongdong-gu Filial Love Wish Fulfillment Project’ this year, following last year, to help fulfill the wishes of elderly people living alone.

The ‘Wish Fulfillment Project’ is a program aimed at realizing the small wishes deeply held in the hearts of elderly people living alone, and it is being carried out by the Seongdong Senior Welfare Center.

The project targets low-income single-person households such as basic livelihood security recipients or near-poverty groups aged 70 or older residing in Seongdong-gu. It is promoted in connection with local comprehensive welfare centers (Seongdong, Oksu, Seongsu) that have frequent contact with the elderly, encouraging active participation from seniors who need changes and vitality in their daily lives.

Applicants can choose from three categories: ▲ ‘Traveling’ which they could not do due to financial difficulties or lack of companions, ▲ ‘Hosting a meal (banquet)’ by inviting the most grateful person in their life, and ▲ ‘One lifelong wish to achieve’ such as creating a hobby for a happy old age.

The application period is until May 10. Applicants must write a detailed wish and the story behind it according to the category and submit it to the Seongdong Senior Welfare Center. After review by the Wish Selection Committee, recipients will be selected. Application forms can be downloaded from the Seongdong Senior Welfare Center website.

Last year, wishes of over 100 elderly people, including travel and banquets, were selected. At the end of the year, a sharing event was held where the seniors who fulfilled their wishes gathered to share their feelings and happiness from participating in the wish fulfillment project.

At the sharing event, there were touching stories from seniors who, through the project, fulfilled various wishes, from receiving a photo album filled with memories after their first-ever trip to Jeju Island, to treating grateful neighbors who had always helped them to a wonderful meal.

Seongdong-gu is recruiting volunteers to assist seniors throughout the wish fulfillment process. Volunteers, after completing a brief training, will accompany the seniors from the planning stage to the realization of their wishes. To help seniors revisit their memories anytime, photo essays and videos will be produced, and volunteers for this task will also be separately recruited. Residents interested in social welfare, including university students who want to participate in volunteer activities, can contact the Seongdong Senior Welfare Center for guidance.

Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, “I hope the Wish Fulfillment Project brings happy changes to the lives of our elderly citizens,” and added, “We will continue to strive to build a community care system for seniors where everyone is respected and protected without exclusion.”