Honorary chairman inducted into KATUSA Hall of Fame
New KATUSA Hall of Fame inductee Kim Jong-wook, left, holds the plaque with Eighth U.S. Army commander LT. Gen. Michael Bills in a ceremony at U.S. Camp Humphreys, Wednesday. Courtesy of KATUSA Veterans Association.
By Oh Young-jin
Kim Jong-wook, honorary chairman of the KATUSA Veterans Association, has been inducted into the KATUSA Hall of Fame as this year's recipient of the Eighth Army SSG Kim Sang Won Distinguished Former KATUSA Award.
In a ceremony at Camp Humphreys, Wednesday evening, Kim was given the plaque for his contribution to bridging U.S. forces here and Korean communities and promoting the two countries' alliance.
Eighth U.S. Army commander Lt. Gen. Michael Bills presented the award.
In a brief interview with The Korea Times, Kim said: “I am deeply proud of receiving this honor.”
Kim served 1977-79 in the Second U.S. Infantry Division at Camp Casey in Dongducheon, north of Seoul.
In his induction speech he said: “My whole life can't be explained without my KATUSA period,” adding that it provided the basis for his career and his success in business.
Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon was last year's recipient.
Kim has helped mature a small unorganized fraternity of KATUSAs into a systematically operating organization. Under his leadership, the Korean Defense Veterans Association has been launched for American soldiers who had tours of duty in Korea.
The award honors Kim Sang Won, a KATUSA solider who was given the U.S. Silver Star Medal for his valor and help to GIs during the Korean War.
KATUSA is the Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army, a program that was born in the middle of the 1950-53 Korean War to help American soldiers who were not familiar with Korea, which was then the battleground.