By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
The ROK-U.S. Alliance Friendship Society presented Lt. Gen. Stephen G. Wood, commander of the U.S. seventh Air Force, a Korean name during a ceremony at Osan Air Base, Gyeonggi Province, Monday, the public affairs office of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said.
Society Chairman Suh Jin-sup said his organization picked the name Woo Chang-hee for Wood, who also serves as deputy chief of the USFK and the United Nations Command led by the USFK commander.
Wood serves as commander of the Korea-U.S. Air Component Command in the air base, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul.
The surname, Woo, was selected partially on the phonetic sound of the commander's last name, while Chang signifies the color blue, symbolizing the blue sky; and hee means shining, according to the organization.
The first name means an ``air force hero who reflects the mission of safeguarding the airspace of the Korean Peninsula,'' a society spokesman said.
Last December, USFK Commander Gen. B. B. Bell was given the Korean name of Baek Bo-guk, whose first name means ``preserving the nation'' by the society.
About 200 guests attended the event at the Osan Officers' Club, the group said.
Some 28,000 U.S. service members are stationed here as a deterrent against North Korea, which conducted its first-ever nuclear test in October 2006.