Returning to Mangu History and Culture Park after 34 years since 1990
Memorial space completion ceremony and memorial service held together
Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi) held a completion ceremony and memorial service for poet Kim Young-rang's memorial space at Mangwoo History and Culture Park on the 24th.
The memorial service included ▲memorial and condolence speeches ▲greetings from the bereaved family representative ▲poetry recitation, geomungo performance, and drum dance, honoring poet Kim Young-rang, an independence activist and cultural artist.
About 50 people attended the memorial service, including Jungnang-gu Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi, National Assembly member Park Hong-geun, Chairman of Jungnang Cultural Foundation Jo Min-gu, Director of Jungnang Cultural Center Jang Soon-yeol, and the bereaved family of poet Kim Young-rang.
Poet Kim Young-rang was buried in Manguri Park in 1954 but was relocated to Yongin Catholic Cemetery in 1990 following his wife Ahn Gwi-ryeon. According to the revised "Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance on Funeral Services, Article 7," enacted in January, and the wishes of the bereaved family, the couple was reinterred at Mangwoo History and Culture Park.
Since the reinterment was confirmed, the district has worked from May to August over three months to renovate the cemetery foundation and create the memorial space. Two poetry monuments and three gravestones were erected in the burial area, with the poetry monuments engraved with verses from Kim Young-rang’s major works, including "Until the Peonies Bloom."
Jungnang-gu Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi said, “We are pleased to welcome poet and independence activist Kim Young-rang to Mangwoo History and Culture Park,” adding, “Since Mangwoo History and Culture Park is a place engraved with Korea’s modern and contemporary history, we will strive to establish facilities worthy of its historical value and continue the spirit of remembrance.”
Mangwoo History and Culture Park has expanded visitor facilities such as Jungnang Mangwoo Space, walking trails, an observatory, and shuttle buses, and conducts various memorial projects and exploration and experience programs. Additionally, by hiring arboriculture experts, the park is being developed as a space for residents by nurturing the natural environment.
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