Invitation Lunch for Meritorious Persons on the 69th Memorial Day
Highest Honors... Participants' Names Engraved on Napkins
Yoon: "Honoring Heroes and Bereaved Families is the Nation's Proper Duty"
President Yoon Suk-yeol salutes the national flag at a luncheon for national merit recipients and veterans' families held at the Blue House's State Guest House on the 6th. [Image source=Yonhap News]
President Yoon Suk-yeol held a luncheon on the 6th to commemorate Memorial Day, inviting 160 national veterans and their families, and stated, "Not only the state and government but all our citizens must cultivate a culture of remembering and appreciating our heroes."
At the luncheon held at the Blue House State Guest House, President Yoon said, "Our society must repay national veterans and their bereaved families with the highest respect."
He added, "Remembering and honoring the heroes who dedicated themselves to the nation and their families is a rightful duty of the state and a way to preserve our identity," and emphasized, "We must always reflect on and never forget how we have remained strong and prosperous, and how our country has developed."
He continued, "The government elevated the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs to a full ministry on June 5 last year," and stressed, "We are putting great effort into spreading a culture that respects national veterans and uniformed personnel."
President Yoon also said, "We will not forget the hard work of uniformed personnel in the military, police, and fire departments who protect the lives and safety of the people to ensure a safe daily life," and added, "You who put the nation and the people first are the true heroes."
The invited national veterans and their families entered the State Guest House amid the formation of the Republic of Korea Honor Guard and the performance of the military band. President Yoon arrived early to personally welcome and honor them.
Even the napkins on the tables bore the phrase "We remember your sacrifice in protecting the Republic of Korea" along with the names of the attendees engraved individually. Kim Soo-kyung, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, said, "The attendees were very proud to see their names engraved on the linen napkins, and some gathered around the president to get his autograph on the napkins."
A napkin embroidered with the names of attendees signed by President Yoon Suk-yeol at the luncheon for national merit recipients and veterans' families held at the Blue House State Guesthouse on the 6th. [Image source=Yonhap News]
The luncheon was attended by executives and members of 19 veterans organizations, including the Republic of Korea Veterans Association, the Republic of Korea War Veterans Bereaved Families Association, and the Republic of Korea War Veterans Widows Association, as well as specially invited guests.
Special guests included veterans Park Dong-gun and Park Cha-saeng, who served as student soldiers during the Korean War, and Jeon Chun-ja, the niece of the late Corporal Jeon Byung-seop, whose remains were excavated last December. In the case of Corporal Jeon Byung-seop, all three brothers participated in the Korean War. The eldest brother, Corporal Jeon Byung-seop, and the youngest brother, the late Second Sergeant Jeon Byung-hwa, died in action, while the middle brother, the late First Sergeant Jeon Byung-cheol, who is Jeon Chun-ja’s father, survived.
Veterans representing the West Sea Defense Forces, including Master Sergeant Hwang Chang-gyu, who participated in the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, and Lieutenant Jeong Gyeong-sik, who fought in the Yeonpyeong Island shelling, also attended the luncheon. Additionally, the father of the late Private Jeon Sae-han, who died in service, Jeon Tae-woong, and the families of the late Sergeant Jang Yong-hoon and the late Fire Lieutenant Heo Seung-min, who died while on duty saving lives, were present.
President Yoon expressed his gratitude by mentioning them directly.
He said, "Veterans Park Dong-gun and Park Cha-saeng gave up their studies at a young age and enlisted as student soldiers when the Korean War broke out to protect our freedom," and added, "Jeon Chun-ja’s father and uncles all served in the Korean War, and her uncle and great uncle died in action without leaving families behind."
Son Hee-won, president of the Republic of Korea Korean War Veterans Association, expressed gratitude, saying that President Yoon dressed them in uniforms at this very place last June, and that wearing the splendid uniforms while walking the streets, riding the subway, or going to restaurants made people recognize and greet them, giving them a sense of pride.
President Yoon Suk-yeol is greeting national merit recipients and their families attending the luncheon for national merit recipients and veterans' families held at the Blue House State Guest House on the 6th. [Image source=Yonhap News]
President Yoon also shared a separate toast with elementary school fourth-grader Jang Woo-jin, the child of Sergeant Jang Yong-hoon, using pineapple juice. When unexpectedly asked to give a speech, Woo-jin happily took the microphone and said he was glad to have a meal with the president and asked to be invited again next time.
At the luncheon, soprano Kwon So-ra, daughter of the late Army Major Kwon Ui-jun who died in service, led the national anthem during the national ceremony, and later in the afternoon performed a commemorative concert singing Patti Kim’s "You Are My Friend" and Shin Moon-hee’s "Beautiful Country."
Earlier that morning, President Yoon attended the 69th Memorial Day ceremony held at the National Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul, and paid respects at the Student Volunteer Soldiers’ Tomb. This site holds the remains of 48 soldiers who died in the Battle of Pohang area in August 1950.
President Yoon said, "Thinking of the student soldiers who, at a young age, took up guns and grenades instead of books and pencils to protect the country and died heroically fills me with a heavy sense of responsibility," and added, "We must never forget that the free Republic of Korea exists today because of those who gave their precious youth to the nation without names or military numbers."
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