From Guatemala to Sokcho: Young man comes to enlist in his father's homeland
Summary
Guatemalan-born Kim Min-woo, 24, came to Sokcho, Gangwon Province, to enlist in his father’s homeland after deciding to serve in the military. He visited his father Kim Dong-jun’s hometown sites, met Sokcho Mayor Lee Byung-sun on Sept. 12, and was found eligible for active-duty service. He will enlist on Nov. 2.
Key Facts
- Kim Min-woo was born in Guatemala and is also known as Andres.
- His father, Kim Dong-jun, moved to Guatemala in the late 1980s after working in the textile industry.
- Min-woo underwent a military service eligibility examination at the Gangneung Military Manpower Administration’s Gangwon Yeongdong regional office and was deemed eligible for active-duty service.
- On Sept. 12, Min-woo and his father visited Sokcho City Hall and met Mayor Lee Byung-sun.
- Lee said he wholeheartedly supports Min-woo’s decision to serve in the military and hoped the visit would deepen the family’s affection for Sokcho.
Guatemalan-born and raised Kim Min-woo, right, poses with Mayor Lee Byung-sun during a visit to City Hall in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, Sept. 12. Kim, who visited Sokcho, his father's hometown, entered Korea to serve in the military and is awaiting his enlistment as an active-duty soldier. Courtesy of Sokcho City
I want to serve in the military in my father’s homeland and learn about Korea’s language and culture.
When Guatemalan-born Kim Min-woo, 24, also known as Andres, suddenly appeared with his hair cut short, his father, Kim Dong-jun, 62, immediately realized what his son had decided to do. Min-woo, who had never visited Korea, had said since childhood that he wanted to “experience my father’s homeland firsthand.” The father and son looked into the enlistment procedures for dual nationals before boarding a flight to Korea.
The first place Min-woo visited after arriving in Korea was Sokcho, Gangwon Province, his father’s hometown. He retraced his family roots by visiting Chilseong Shipyard where his grandfather worked, and the neighborhood where his father played as a child.
On Sept. 12, Min-woo and his father visited Sokcho City Hall and met Mayor Lee Byung-sun. The elder Kim, a graduate of Sokcho High School, was one class year behind Lee and had participated with him in the Buddhist Students Association during their school days.
Min-woo's father worked in the textile industry before moving to Guatemala in the late 1980s, where he settled and started a family. Min-woo is the youngest of four children born to Dong-jun and Ana Guzman, who served as a member of Guatemala’s Congress. A maternal first cousin of Min-woo’s mother served as chief of staff of the Guatemalan Air Force.
Kim Dong-jun and Lee met again in Guatemala in 2007. At the time, Lee, then a member of the Gangwon provincial council, visited Guatemala for efforts to bring the 2018 Winter Olympics to PyeongChang. Kim went to the clock tower in the central square of Antigua hoping to run into him. Their long-lost connection was rekindled when Lee happened to visit the square and they met.
Nineteen years later, the two reunited in Sokcho, this time with Min-woo also present. Lee said he “wholeheartedly supports Min-woo’s decision to serve in the military to gain a deeper understanding of his father’s homeland,” adding that he hoped the visit will become a cherished memory for the father and son and deepen their affection for Sokcho, their family’s hometown.
Min-woo underwent a military service eligibility examination at the Gangneung Military Manpower Administration’s Gangwon Yeongdong regional office and was deemed eligible for active-duty service. He will enlist on Nov. 2 and begin his military service in the “father’s homeland” he is experiencing for the first time.
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.
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