The "Faceless Angel of Jeonju" has once again visited this year without fail. This marks the 26th year and the 27th occurrence. The Faceless Angel of Jeonju refers to an anonymous donor who, since 2000, has left donations near the Nosong-dong Community Center in Jeonju City around Christmas and the end of each year, then disappeared without revealing their identity.
According to Jeonju City on December 30, at approximately 3:43 p.m., a call was received at the Nosong-dong Community Center. The caller left a message saying, "I left a box under the pine tree in front of the Gijachon Korean Buffet. Please use it for a good cause," and then immediately hung up. Staff who rushed to the location discovered a cardboard box containing bundles of cash and a piggy bank.
The letter inside the box read, "I hope only good things happen in 2026. I wish you good health and a Happy New Year." The total amount of the donation in the box was tallied at 90,046,000 won, including bundles of 50,000-won bills totaling 90 million won. With this, the cumulative donations left by the Faceless Angel now amount to 1,134,882,520 won.
The "Faceless Angel" of Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, once again left a donation this year without fail and disappeared. On the afternoon of December 30, 2025, staff at the Nosong-dong Community Center in Jeonju City confirmed the donation left by the angel. Photo by Yonhap News.
In accordance with the angel's wishes, Jeonju City plans to use the donation to support underprivileged groups in the Nosong-dong area, such as children who are heads of their households and elderly people living alone. The angel began this tradition in April 2000 by leaving a piggy bank containing 584,000 won with a note asking for it to be used for neighbors in need, and has since left donations ranging from several million to tens of millions of won each year. Because the donor has never revealed their name or face, they are known as the "Faceless Angel."
Over the years, the donations have been delivered to Nosong-dong residents and students in need in the form of coal briquettes, rice, and scholarships. In 2019, there was an incident when about 60 million won left near the Nosong-dong Community Center was stolen, but the donations have continued regardless.
The local community has also made efforts to honor the angel's wishes. In 2009, Jeonju City erected a monument commemorating the Faceless Angel, named the area around the Nosong-dong Community Center "Angel's Road," and established a memorial park. Every year on October 4, local residents celebrate "Angel's Day" by holding charity events for neighbors in need. Jeonju City has also designated the Faceless Angel as a "future heritage" with the hope that it will become a treasure of Jeonju in 100 years.
A photo of 60 bags of 10kg white rice and a letter left by an anonymous donor in front of the Administrative Welfare Center in Yongjin-eup, Wanju-gun, Jeonbuk. Provided by Wanju-gun
On the same day, the tradition of giving by a faceless angel continued for the 18th year in Yongjin-eup, Wanju-gun, Jeollabuk-do. Yongjin-eup officials reported that, shortly after Christmas, staff discovered 60 bags of 10kg white rice and a letter left in front of the Administrative Welfare Center.
The handwritten letter left by the angel expressed a warm wish "to deliver the warmth of love to neighbors spending difficult times in the most remote and darkest places." The letter also included a message of encouragement, hoping that "the lives of Yongjin-eup residents, who live by sharing with one another, will be filled with hope and courage."
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