"Thanks to You, I Held My Father's Funeral"...Foreign Worker Repaid Doctor 1 Million Won

"Tears for the Effort to Repay Every Single Penny"

A doctor in Chungnam shared a story about lending money to a Filipino migrant worker so he could attend his father's funeral and later getting the money back.

Park Hyun-seo, director of Hyundai Hospital in Asan, Chungnam, recently revealed on his Facebook the story of a Filipino migrant worker, Mr. A, who was hospitalized for a week last September due to an acute hyperthyroidism attack.

1 million won and a letter from a Filipino migrant worker to the hospital director. Photo by Hyunseo Park, Director of Hyundai Hospital, Facebook

Director Park said, "One day before Mr. A's discharge, he was sitting on the bed crying pitifully. He said his father in the Philippines suddenly passed away in a traffic accident. He needed to fly to his country to attend his father's funeral but had no money to buy a plane ticket, so he was crying." At that time, Mr. A's father was taking care of his mother who was battling cancer, and his younger siblings were too young, so the family barely managed to survive on the money Mr. A sent.

In response, Director Park handed Mr. A an envelope containing 1 million won. He said, "I told him to take good care of his father in the Philippines and that it was a loan, so he should repay it after earning money. I also told him never to tell anyone about the loan." He added, "I gave him money for the plane ticket and told him to earn money to pay for the discharge fee, then sent him off and completely forgot about it."

After eight months, on the 18th, Mr. A returned to Director Park with an envelope containing 1 million won and a letter written in English. Park said, "During the day while I was seeing patients, a young foreign man insisted on giving something to me and was struggling with a nurse outside the clinic where more than 20 patients were waiting." He continued, "When I saw what was happening, Mr. A was quietly handing me a thick envelope and an English letter with an apologetic expression."

He added, "He said that thanks to my help last year, he was able to properly bury his father and has now returned to Korea to work again. He apologized for repaying the money so late." Park said, "Seeing how he saved every penny month by month while sending money to his struggling family back home and made such an effort to repay me brought tears to my eyes."

Director Park said, "Seeing how he saved every penny month by month while sending money to his struggling family back home and made such an effort to repay me brought tears to my eyes," and added, "Most foreign workers are pure and honest."