SOUTH KOREA: Hundreds of Santas gather in central Seoul to deliver presents and hope to premature babies

More than one Santa was needed to deliver his Christmas list in South Korea. Over 150 South Korean Santas gathered in downtown Seoul on Wednesday (December 20), where they committed to warm-up exercises before dispersing in vans to distribute Christmas gifts to families who gave birth to premature babies. The Santas shouted "Merry Christmas!" and released hundreds of heart-shaped balloons with messages of hope attached for the children. "We prepared this event so that we could go visit the homes of those who were born as premature babies, give them presents and encourage them," said Yoon Jung-sook, executive director of The Beautiful Foundation. After warming up, the Santas were given presents and cakes distributed by members of the foundation and headed out to the families in vans. Several of the Santas participating in the event were also prematurely born children. "I was born as a premature baby and my mother had difficulty raising me. I participated in this event to give strength to those mothers who delivered premature babies," said Lee Ur-ie. The Beautiful Foundation had donated about 14 million U.S. dollars together with Kyobo Life Insurance, one of South Korea's major insurance companies, to help low-income families who had experienced financial and psychological difficulties due to the premature births. The Santas were scheduled to visit or send presents to about 272 families across the country.

ITN Source | December 24, 2006

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