Heartfelt Gesture by Hearing-Impaired Couple
Picture Book Author’s ‘Handkerchief Letter’ & Participation of 40s Couple from Seattle
A story has touched many hearts as a hearing-impaired couple takes orders through gestures. They are part of a larger volunteer effort bringing comfort to families grieving after losing loved ones in the Jeju Air passenger plane crash.
As of 10 a.m. on the 6th, around 6,000 volunteers have participated in activities including site recovery support, assistance for the bereaved, traffic guidance, food and supplies distribution through ‘Love’s Food Truck’, and disaster psychology support.
Among them, a hearing-impaired couple living in Mokpo has been preparing 300 servings of coffee, citron tea, and ginger tea every day since the accident to offer free of charge at Muan Airport. They placed a note beside their menu that reads, “We are unable to hear. Please use gestures to communicate,” adding a touching element to their service.
Im Gyeonghee, an author from Suwon who has been educating about death through picture books for 30 years, distributed 600 handkerchiefs with handwritten letters to the bereaved families with fellow members of the authors’ association, hoping to share in their painful stories. “Upon hearing the news of the Jeju Airport disaster, I couldn’t just watch members of our community mourn on TV and forget this tragedy, so I decided to visit the site,” said Im.
A man in his 40s, who has lived in Seattle for over 20 years, recalled his past experiences as a U.S. soldier and a light aircraft instructor. Feeling empathy, he and his wife traveled back to South Korea on the 1st to engage in volunteer activities like transporting and distributing supplies and environmental cleanup at Muan Airport. Despite being asked for contact information by the volunteer center, he politely declined, saying he wished to volunteer quietly.
A farming association corporation in Seogwipo, Jeju donated 156 boxes of tangerines, while a bakery in Gwangmyeong sent 79 boxes of frozen bread. The Seoul Korean Medicine Association and Seoul City Hall provided 12,000 units of herbal medicines, and a citizen in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul donated 200 servings of rice bread and blueberry jam.
Kim Yeong-rok, Governor of Jeollanam-do, commented, “Seeing the volunteer activities that share in the grief of bereaved families, who suddenly lost loved ones in a tragic accident, reiterated that volunteering is not just an act of kindness but a crucial societal value. Considering the profound loss and pain of the bereaved, the province will offer detailed support such as trauma counseling to help them regain stability quickly.”
Jeollanam-do has been guiding volunteers by posting a popup on their website immediately after the accident on the 29th of the previous month, detailing contact information for inquiries about volunteering and donations related to the Jeju Air plane accident.
