Geum develops business from simple repair shop to builder of specialized sports modelsHalf the workers at wheelchair maker Wheel Line are disabled themselves, including chief executive Geum Dong-ok. The reason: “Those who need them the most will make wheelchairs with passion and consideration,” he says. Geum, 39, was a healthy, responsible young man before an incident 20 years ago, when he spotted a girl he knew getting harassed by pimps. When he tried to rescue her, they stabbed him in his back

Koh Young-cho, a neurosurgeon at Konkuk University Medical Center, has been treating neglected people for 35 years. At the age of 59, Koh is still passionate about seeing patients from three nonprofit clinics in Seoul for the destitute, the homeless and immigrants “The joy of helping others is so exhilarating that you even feel rejuvenated,” he told The Korea Herald. Growing up in a devout Catholic family, he had wanted to become a cleric and attended a clergy school for five years.  In his fina

Holidaymakers and fishermen are worried about giant toxic jellyfish showing up in Korea’s coastal areas in record numbers this summer.A girl was killed earlier this month and more than 500 people have been stung by jellyfish in the seas around Busan this season. The southern resort island of Jeju saw more than 130 people stung.Although there have been reports in China and Southeast Asia of deaths caused by poisonous jellyfish, Korea was considered relatively safe from them. However, the scare is

Low price of soju costing Korea enormouslyBinge-drinking in Korea was once viewed as a relatively harmless deviation among the nation’s workaholics, but its burden on public money and social capital is starting to prompt action. The cost of premature death caused by alcohol exceeded 3 trillion won ($2.6 billion) in 2007 and is likely to have risen since. The government has been tightening the regulatory system. Drinking in public parks will be banned from next year. In Seoul, there are proposals

Park Su-nam can neither read music nor play an instrument, but the 19-year-old North Korean defector is a proud member of the Heemang Poongcha Orchestra, along with 75 others who crossed the border to escape poverty and oppression.The orchestra, whose name means Windmill of Hope, was launched earlier this month by the Korean Red Cross to help the teens overcome their scars and adapt to life in the South.“The orchestra will aspire to support young North Korean defectors by helping them get used t

Bae Jun-sik, a 59-year-old man who grows ginseng in Gimje, North Jeolla Province, became the first farmer to join the “Honor Society” club of large individual donors. “Honor Society” was founded in 2008 by the Community Chest of Korea and currently has 139 members. It aims to develop a mature philanthropic culture. To become a member, one must donate a minimum of 100 million won ($87,000).“Sharing takes courage to do; I hope this will be a small initiative for the diffusion of charity culture in