Chairman Kim Jae-chul of Dongwon Group took over Starkist, a U.S. tuna fish company in Pittsburg, the U.S., which was considered the biggest in the world in 2008. While inspecting the fishing company’s plant in Pittsburg after the acquisition, Chairman Kim found out that 2,400 young men from the state of Pennsylvania died during the 1950-53 Korean War, the second most after California among all the U.S. soldiers.

It was a heartfelt moment for the chairman, who is aveteran of the war himself. He joined the Korean military as the war broke out as a college student. He always appreciated the fact that the U.S. fought alongside South Korea in the War, with many of its soldiers dying. He called for a meeting of top assistants to find a way for Dongwon Group to express its appreciation for the sacrifice of the soldiers from Pennsylvania.

Since 2010, the group has held a small event, which included inviting families of deceased dead soldiers from Pennsylvania for lunch. In the initial year, the group invited 25 couples of Korean War veterans in the state. The number has grown every year. This year, the number rose to 170.

The chairman said the sacrifices of UN troops, including U.S. troops, in the war became the foundation for the development of “the Korea we enjoy today” and said he appreciates the sacrifice all the time.

Kim visits a monument set up to remember the sacrifices made by soldiers from Pennsylvania, and makes a silent prayer when he visits the Starkist plant in Pittsburg.

Kim held a similar event in New Zealand, too. When he was an honorary consul-general of New Zealand, he invited veterans from New Zealand who fought in the Korean War to the Pukyong University, located near the U.N. Cemetery in Busan, and conveyed his appreciation for their sacrifices during the war. A total of 120 soldiers and their families, as well as diplomats from New Zealand led by New Zealand Prime Minister John Philip Key, attended the first year’s event.

The Dongwon Group chairman said he always appreciated the sacrifices made by foreign soldiers during the Korean War, knowing that it was their sacrifices that made possible Korea’s development today.

The National Busan Fisheries University is the former name of the Pukyong University. The fisheries university, where chairman Kim graduated from, was used as a hospital for U.S. soldiers during the Korean War as well as serving as the temporary headquarters for U.S. forces in Korea in the early stages of the war.

In recognition of Chairman Kim’s meritorious activities in honor of the foreign soldiers who sacrificed their lives for Korea, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs honored him with the Plaque of Appreciation on Sept. 2 in a brief ceremony in the auditorium of Dongwon Industry in Yangjae-dong, Seoul. 

Minister Park Seung-choon presented the chairman with the plaque, saying that “Chairman Kim has been holding the appreciation events on a civilian level to honor the U.S. and New Zealand soldiers fought during the war, upgrading the position of Korea in the world with a mighty contribution to strengthen Korea’s friendly ties with the foreign countries that participated in the war.”

Chairman Kim responded by saying that Korea should develop its economy and democracy further to show that the blood shed by foreign soldiers was never in vain, and he will continue to hold the appreciative events in the years to come in honor of foreign soldiers who fought during the Korean War. 

A group of foreign veterans  who fought during the Korean War is shown here at one of the events they attended while in Seoul. (Photos: Dongwon Group)