A handwritten letter from a woman in her 80s in Cheoin District, Yongin, Gyeonggi, describes her husband’s work in the coal mines of Taebaek, Gangwon. The woman delivered the letter to the city along with a donation of 21.95 million won ($16,400) on Oct. 8.YONGIN CITY GOVERNMENT
A woman in her 80s who raised four children on little while her husband worked in a coal mine has donated 21.95 million won ($16,400) to help her neighbors, though she is still far from well off.
The woman, a resident of Cheoin District in Yongin, Gyeonggi, has trouble getting around but came to city hall in person to hand over the money last Thursday. The city announced the donation on Wednesday.
Tucked among the bundles of cash was a handwritten letter.
“It is bright and sunny again today,” the woman wrote. “This old woman who knows nothing is writing down a few words.”
The letter went on to describe Taebaek, a coal-mining city in Gangwon, where her husband worked in the mines to provide for their three sons and a daughter.
“When you go in there and come back out, your face is black,” the woman wrote, describing the coal dust from the mines. “My husband, who had no money, worked there. He worked, and we barely scraped by.”
The woman’s husband developed silicosis, an incurable lung disease caused by breathing in fine silica dust. “It is something you carry for the rest of your life,” the woman wrote.
Miners head to work at Korea Coal Corporation’s Jangseong mine in Taebaek, Gangwon, on March 29, 2024, the mine’s last day of mining. The country’s largest coal mine, which traced its roots to 1936, closed later that year.YONHAP
“I am living in financial hardship, but now that my children have grown into upstanding members of society, I want to share with neighbors in need,” the woman told the city. “I hope the donation will be used for lonely older people and for children from families in need.”
The woman is not giving because her own circumstances have improved. She is still struggling and chose to share anyway.
The donor also wanted to help quietly rather than make her name known. City officials visited the woman to thank her and presented her with a “shy giving” badge, which the city made to honor donors who give without publicizing their names.
In keeping with her wishes, the city plans to allocate the funds to older residents and children in need in Yongin through the Gyeonggi branch of the Community Chest of Korea.
“My children can get by now, too, so I want to donate,” the woman wrote at the end of her letter. “I will stop here.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
