Warm-hearted US soldiers offer homeless meals

Lt. Col. Dan Roger Brue II, commander of the 41st Signal Battalion of the Eighth U.S. Army, hands out a sandwich and water to a homeless man at Seoul Station on April 26. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

By Jun Ji-hye

Occasionally, there are headlines regarding misconduct by U.S. soldiers including sex crimes and assaults that tarnish the image of all GIs stationed in South Korea.

But it is rarely known that many soldiers of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) actively take part in volunteer activities to support the underprivileged. Their good deeds draw relatively little media attention.

Lt. Col. Dan Roger Brue II, commander of the 41st Signal Battalion stationed in Yongsan Garrison in Seoul, is one such warm-hearted soldier.

Brue and soldiers from his unit prepare simple meals to give to the homeless at Seoul Station.

“We typically serve hotdogs, but we have served sandwiches, soup, and rice and beans,” he said in a recent interview with The Korea Times. “Everyone who helps is a volunteer. Some are soldiers. Others are family members of the soldiers in the 41st Signal Battalion.”

“Many contribute a package of hotdogs or some chips and it can add up to a significant number of meals.”

Brue began the volunteer activity last November when he and other soldiers realized that they still had plenty of food prepared by soldiers and their families after a unit celebration of the American Thanksgiving holiday.

Lt. Col. Dan Roger Brue II, center, along with soldiers from his unit and their families, walks at the square of Seoul Station on April 26 to find homeless people to give them meals. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

“My wife, Dana Elise Brue, suggested we provide it to the homeless near Seoul Station. So, we went to the station and served a Thanksgiving meal there,” he said.

He believed that providing a meal for those less fortunate really allowed his soldiers to understand how much they had to be thankful for.

“Dana began to go almost every week to the station, and soldiers would ask if they could go too,” he said. “Over time, more and more soldiers and family members wanted to volunteer. Since January, we have gone 13 times and handed out over 1,600 meals.”

He noted that his wife is the kindest and most giving person he has ever met, saying she always prepared food for the homeless on Thanksgiving and Christmas when his family lived back in the United States.

“She has fed the homeless for as long as I have known her,” he said. “When we first met years ago, and she told me what she planned to do that Christmas, I was concerned for her safety and went with her.

“She gets such joy out of giving and helping others. After I experienced the excitement and appreciation from those she helped, it just seemed the right thing to do.”

When asked about the most memorable situation during his voluntary work at Seoul Station, he recalled one evening at the station when they ran out of food.

“Dana was upset that she did not have a meal for one gentleman, so she went to buy him a meal. The gentleman had not been upset that we ran out, but Dana was,” he said. “I told her, ‘It is okay. You cannot save the world.’ She simply replied, ‘But, I can make sure one less person goes to sleep hungry tonight.’”

The Korea Times accompanied Brue and about 20 soldiers and their families on April 26 when they went to the station for volunteering with sandwiches and boxes of water.

Brue came with his daughter, Freedom Brooke Davis, instead of his wife that day.

They started in the underground station and then moved outside.

Right after they showed up, homeless people recognized them and came asking for meals.

Little kids were not frightened to come close to the homeless and hand them food.

The homeless repeatedly told them, “Thank you,” in not so good English.

Brue said he hopes that the homeless know there are people who think and care about them.

“We will keep trying to help whomever we can. The soldiers and family members of the 41st Signal Battalion volunteer regularly, not just with feeding the homeless; they visit orphanages; help out in elementary schools; and do other volunteer programs on base,” he said.

Brue has served in the U.S. Army for 28 years. Before coming to South Korea, he was stationed in Germany, Kuwait, Italy, and Japan.

“I have had the opportunity to travel extensively throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa,” he said. “I think the opportunity to see the world is wonderful and it has provided a wonderful education for my children.”

Last but not least, he did not forget to say that people can follow his efforts at