NAVOTAS City, April 8, 2013—Korean missionaries who are running a daycare center for indigent children and feeding malnourished kids in this city are appealing to Filipinos to pray for peace in North and South Korea.
Sr. Kim Lucia of the Seoul-based Sisters of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help said they have not heard news about the brewing war straight from their congregation, adding that they rely only on news reported by
Philippine media and those published in the internet.
“We are worried,” she admitted. “Please pray for our country.” Sr. Kim is one of the three Korean missionaries who run the “Tahanan ni Maria” (House of Mary) school that educates and feeds five- to
six-year-old children belonging to poor families under the parish of San Lorenzo Ruiz and Martyrs Church in Kaunlaran Village in this city.
“Tahanan ni Maria” was built within the parish grounds in 2006 and is now second home to some 106 pre-school students.
The Korean missionaries also hold feeding programs to three other barangays in Lichangco, Tumana and Kapitbahayan. The program benefits at least 300 children on a daily basis. They also help fund the
education of indigent students through scholarships, and give free medical consultation and medicine to poor families who frequent their clinic than the government-run health centers.
“Our missionary work continues,” she said, “despite what’s happening in Korea.”
Sr. Kim said they are doing missionary work in the Philippines as a way to pay back a historical debt of gratitude.
“During the Korean war, other countries helped us even though they also have poor people to attend to. They helped us back then so this time, we want to help other countries back,” she added. Their congregation is present in Kazakstan, Peru and China for mission work.
Although admittedly having a hard time conversing with Filipinos because of their poor command of the English language, Sr. Kim said Korean missionaries are inspired by the Filipinos’ way of life.
“Filipinos are very poor yet they have warm hearts and firm belief in God, which make them still happy despite their poverty. It makes me wonder how they can be poor but still happy,” she said.
“It’s a pity that Filipinos always have a problem. They always lack money to go to the hospital, to buy their food and to afford education but they still find reasons to be happy. This is why we are trying our
best to help them as Jesus told us to help poor people,” Sr. Kim said. (KB/CBCP News)
