"She Must Have Lived So Diligently"... Traces of a Young Life Left Behind in Belongings [2025 Unclaimed Deaths Report ③]

Visiting the Scene of a Young Person's Estate Organization
Alone in Life and Death... No Family Left Behind
Kindergarten Teacher Remembered by Children's Letters
Over 100 Unaccompanied Deaths Under 40 Each Year

"How lonely you must have felt all by yourself. I hope you find peace and rest in a better place."

Antidepressants that the deceased took during their lifetime are accumulated. Photo by Seungwook Park

At around 7:30 a.m. on November 29, in an apartment in Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Yoon Jeongseop, CEO of the estate organization company "Charisma" (age 50), opened the firmly closed door and, as if by habit, opened the window first. He then unfolded a desk to create a simple altar and poured soju into a paper cup to console the spirit of the deceased. The deceased was a woman in her twenties with no surviving family, discovered by the landlord a week after her death. Although the police and local authorities identified her and made every effort to locate her relatives, there were no family members left behind.

That day, CEO Yoon sorted the deceased's belongings, such as clothes and scrap metal, and packed them into sacks. Items and documents containing personal information were set aside separately. In the refrigerator, there were only delivery food containers, such as tteokbokki and fried chicken, which the deceased seemed to have enjoyed during her lifetime. In the kitchen drawer, there were canned ham and instant rice, among other convenience foods. There was little evidence of home-cooked meals. The cooking oil found in a corner had expired over a year ago.

Yoon Jeongseop, CEO of the estate organization company "Charisma" (age 50), is creating a simple altar to honor the spirit of the deceased. Photo by Seungwook Park

The deceased appeared to have been a young woman who lived more diligently than anyone else. The album found while organizing her belongings was filled with various certificates, including a teaching certificate, a caregiver certificate, and a nursing assistant certificate. After graduating from college on her own, she worked as a daycare teacher until earlier this year. On the back pages of the album were letters from children she taught at the daycare. One letter read, "To the teacher with fair skin and a beautiful smile, thank you always," which lingered in the mind.

Although she was a beloved teacher to the children, at home, she was thoroughly alone. On the kitchen shelf, there were envelopes of antidepressants that she had to take morning and evening. CEO Yoon said, "Whenever I clean the rooms of young people who have passed away alone, I always find antidepressants," adding, "The deceased must have endured her pain alone, with no family to confide in," expressing his sorrow.

Photo by Seungwook Park is organizing the belongings of the deceased at their home.

There was also evidence that she had recently been receiving unemployment benefits and searching for a job. On a note on her desk, she had written resolutions for a comeback, such as "sense of challenge," "responsibility," and "looking for school-linked education."

On the veranda, laundry that had been hung out recently remained untouched, most of it pajamas. While sorting her clothes, dozens of pajamas were found. Near the end of the cleanup, a small note was discovered with "Mother's name: ○○○, Mother's address: ○○○" written in tiny letters. Although her family was officially listed as "none" in her resident registration, it was information about her biological mother that she must have found somewhere and cherished during her lifetime. It was unknown whether she ever met her mother before she died.

Notes that the deceased seemed to have written during their lifetime for a comeback. Photo by Seungwook Park

According to a survey of 229 local governments nationwide by age group, the number of people under 40 who died with no surviving family increased from 68 in 2016 to 114 in 2020, consistently remaining in the 100s. Last year, 116 people died alone, and from January to May this year, 48 people ended their lives in solitude. Among them, those with absolutely no family or relatives accounted for about 30% of the total. In 2021, it was 32.9% (28 out of 85), in 2022, 34.0% (32 out of 94), in 2023, 31.1% (33 out of 106), last year, 29.6% (29 out of 98), and from January to May this year, 35.7% (15 out of 42). Every year, dozens of people leave this world alone.

※ If you are struggling with depression or other difficult issues, or if you know a family member or acquaintance who is experiencing such difficulties, you can receive 24-hour counseling from a professional by calling the suicide prevention hotline at ☎109 or through the suicide prevention SNS counseling service "Madeleine."