wfn.org | Pastor seeks operation for Korean boy

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TITLE:Pastor seeks operation for Korean boy

Oct. 13, 1999	Contact: Linda Green·(615)742-5470·Nashville, Tenn.
10-35-71B{538}

By Mary Cahill*

COLUMBIA, Md. (UMNS) -- It started with a call in the night, the
heart-stopping sound of a phone ringing at 2:30 a.m., a voice in Korean
asking the Rev. Kiyul Chung to turn his life upside down for a child he
didn't even know.

The call from Korea told Chung about an 8-year-old boy whose only hope for
survival lay in coming to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for treatment
of a rare cancer. The child, Yong Woo Lee, would need a place to stay,
someone to be his advocate in the maze of medical and governmental
protocols, and -- most challenging of all -- someone to ensure that the
estimated $200,000 bill for treatment would be paid in full.

"At first, I hesitated a few seconds because of my wife's health, our
financial situation, my full-time job at a local parish, and other
commitments in Korean peace work. I wondered if I could do everything that
was being asked of me," Chung said. "I talked to my wife: I asked her, 'Can
we do this?'  'Yes,' she said.  I asked her again. She said, 'Yes.'  I asked
her a third time.  'Yes.'"
   
Within a week, the boy and his mother arrived at Dulles International
Airport in Washington.

"'How could you accept this commitment?' friends asked me," Chung said. "But
my wife and I prayed together and we knew we should go ahead."  

Their friends had reason to be concerned. Chung's wife, Chung Ok, is
recovering from a bilateral radical mastectomy. Last year, the couple's son
and daughter were in a terrible car crash. Their son, who narrowly escaped
death, required multiple facial reconstruction surgeries. Their 5-year-old
daughter died.
    
At the time of the accident, the Rev. Fred Crider, senior pastor at Timonium
United Methodist Church, started up the Chung Emergency Fund to meet the
needs of his associate pastor's family.  "Fred has been a great pastor to
us," Chung said. "He is a mentor, friend and great support.  When I told him
about Yong Woo, he said, 'Why don't we re-open the Chung Emergency Fund?
Here's $300 to start it.'"  

A couple of weeks later, with the help of the people at Timonium Church,
there is almost $3,000 in the fund.

In his Sept. 26 sermon, Chung referred to the people of the Exodus,
describing how they complained to Moses and to God about the uncertainties
and hardships of their journey. "But notice in this story," Chung pointed
out, "God never complains -- people do. People complain before the unknown,
but when they take the challenge, they experience amazing grace."  

Then he stepped down from the pulpit and walked up and down the aisles of
the sanctuary, telling his congregation the story of Yong Woo Lee and the
special help the boy needs. When he got to the pew where Baltimore County
Executive C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger was sitting, he stopped.
    
"Dutch," he said, "I need your help." Chung explained that Yong Woo's
father, Kyungryul Lee, a peace activist devoted to the reunification of
Korea, remained at home in South Korea with Yong Woo's 10-year-old brother,
who is mentally challenged. Because of his political activities, Kyungryul
has been unable to obtain a visa to come be with his son during this crucial
time in the life of the family.  

Chung asked Ruppersberger to help Kyungryul get a visa. Ruppersberger
enlisted the help of U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.). The visa is now
being processed, and Yong Woo's father and brother will soon be able to join
the rest of the family in Maryland.
    
In the meantime, a member of Chung's congregation wrote a press release that
resulted in a story about Yong Woo in the Baltimore Sun newspaper, as well
as news coverage on the Fox Network. The story has also been covered by one
of the largest Korean-American newspapers on the east coast.  

Another member brought Yong Woo's plight to the attention of the president
of the Children's Cancer Fund, resulting in a speeding-up of the complicated
diagnostic process. A student in the Korean-style yoga class that Chung Ok
teaches is a geneticist at the National Institute of Health (NIH).  

Her interest in Yong Woo's case brought about the involvement of experts at
NIH. In addition, in her work in genetics, the woman noted a link in some
families between mental retardation of a child and the occurrence of cancer
in a subsequent sibling. Because of this, NIH has offered to work with Yong
Woo's older brother as well.
    
Many people would look at this cascade of help as a miracle, but Chung has a
different way of describing it.  

"Something keeps moving among us, in us, through us," he said. "It makes us
humble before the mystery of life and death. Human beings are so limited.
But when we put our faith and trust in God's hands, we experience God's
amazing grace."
    
Chung's eyes light up as he describes his habit of sitting before his
daughter's photograph each morning and talking to her before he begins his
day.  

"Having experienced her loss has made my family even more committed, makes
us even more aware of God's grace.

"I'll tell you this," he said. "As soon as this boy entered our house, my
wife and I felt our daughter was here. His life coming into our life -- it
was as if it were our daughter coming into our life. We feel God's presence
and grace every day.  It makes hope alive."

More information is available by contacting the Yong Woo Lee Foundation
Inc., 11249-B Snowflake Court, Columbia, Md. 21044; phone (410) 884-3649.   

# # #

*Cahill is a free-lance writer living in the Baltimore area. 

*************************************
United Methodist News Service
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