The Yeongjong 1-dong Community Security Council (Co-Chairs Lee Cheol-ho and Kim Sang-kwon) in Jung-gu, Incheon, has joined hands with a local restaurant to provide warm meals each month to residents in financial difficulty. On the 24th, the council signed a business agreement with the local restaurant Sumuntong Jjamppong (CEO Kim Nam-su) for vulnerable residents who have few opportunities to dine out.
 [The Korean Today] Business agreement between Sumuntong Jjamppong and the Yeongjong 1-dong Community Security Council on free meal support © Reporter Kim Mi-hee |
Under the agreement, Sumuntong Jjamppong will select two vulnerable households each month and provide them with free meals. Which households receive the support is determined by the Yeongjong 1-dong council, which reviews local circumstances and directly identifies and recommends households in need. The arrangement combines a private restaurant's spirit of sharing with the outreach capacity of the dong-level welfare network.
For neighbors who had found it hard to share a meal out with their families because of financial burdens, the support carries meaning beyond a single meal. The council expects that the initiative will offer vulnerable residents a chance to gather around a table with their families and create lasting memories.
The decision to share grew out of the owner's own experience. Kim Nam-su, CEO of Sumuntong Jjamppong, said, "I once felt deep regret seeing students who came to the restaurant with their friends but could not eat because of their financial circumstances."
 [The Korean Today] Signing ceremony for the monthly free meal sharing agreement for Yeongjong 1-dong's vulnerable residents © Reporter Kim Mi-hee |
Kim added, "That experience led me to want to offer a warm meal to neighbors in difficulty. I joined this effort hoping that children and families in vulnerable circumstances can dine together and create happy memories."
Kim Sang-kwon, the private-sector co-chair, said, "I am grateful to CEO Kim Nam-su, who readily took part in sharing for the community," adding, "I hope this agreement becomes a precious opportunity for neighbors in need to dine out, and a catalyst for spreading a culture of sharing in the community."
Lee Cheol-ho, head of Yeongjong 1-dong, said, "This agreement is a meaningful case in which the community's warm interest and sharing have been turned into welfare resources for neighbors in need," adding, "We will continue to do our best to identify and connect diverse private resources to build a tight-knit welfare safety net for neighbors in difficulty." By linking private goodwill into a sustainable welfare resource at the dong level, this case is expected to take root as a model for strengthening the local safety net.
[ Reporter Kim Mi-hee: incheonsouth@thekoreantoday.com ]
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