Jon Dunbar is a copy editor at The Korea Times, as well as editor of the Foreign Community page and curator of the Korea Times Archive. If you have suggestions for possible articles, or wish to contribute articles yourself, contact jdunbar@koreatimes.co.kr.
Michael Simning award honors community building in Gwangju
A portrait of Michael Simning hangs over the bar at Speakeasy, Gwangju's oldest expat bar. / Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar
By Jon Dunbar
By Jon Dunbar
Canadian expat Michael Simning gained a reputation for his oversized community spirit in Korea's southwestern city of Gwangju.
Having first moved to Korea in 1995, Simning volunteered as a translator for the local police, organized volunteer teachers for
, gave talks at the
and co-founded the city's first foreign-owned bar,
, among other accomplishments, all in his spare time.
Simning passed away in 2014 after a long fight with leukemia, but his spirit lives on in the community he helped build, as well as in the Michael Simning Community Builder Award.
The award is given each year to an individual or individuals for contributing to the city through volunteering. Now in its fifth year, it is handed out in early June, shortly before Simning's birthday, in an awards ceremony held at the GIC. Birthday cake is served in his honor, and winners receive 200,000 won in cash and another 200,000 won to contribute to a charity of their choice. All nominees also receive a Hawaiian shirt, a signature of Simning's wardrobe.
Past winners have been recognized for charity work, helping orphans, international families and women. Over two dozen people have been nominated for the award over five years.
This year had three nominees: Gwangju News managing editor Karina Prananto, jeweler Misub Hur who helps foreign residents by offering various events and workshops, and Daniel Wallace who won the award.
Wallace is an evangelist of the local arts and music community. He has hosted open mic events at local restaurants Corona and Tequilaz for the past four years, as well as acting in
plays including a production of “The Taming of the Shrew,” and he is an enthusiastic member of the
which runs concerts at Gwangju's Daein Market every Saturday.
“I think the open mic and my efforts to support live music were a big part of why I won as well as willingness to get involved in the community in general,” Wallace told The Korea Times. “It felt a bit weird to win to be honest but I respect the people making the decision and feel like I could accept the award gladly in the spirit of the Gwangju community which I love being a member of.”
Previous winners include Al Barnum (2015) and Sarah Elizabeth Hale (2017) for their roles in the Adopt-A-Child for Christmas project, Jeff Hamilton and Kelly Palmer Kim (2016) for setting up and running the Global Families of Gwangju community organization, and Dana Han (2018) for her work raising funds for a single mothers' shelter.
Look up the
on Facebook for more information.
Gwangju International Center (GIC)