 |
| © Korea Herald |
I was browsing through Korea Herald to update myself with
what’s happening in the country when I came across this article entitled ‘Homeless Baristas Brew Hope’ from Lee Hyunjeong. It piqued my curiosity, and as I read through it,
inspiration dawned.
According to news, the café called ‘Café Espresso of my Life’
is actually a project of the city government of Seoul. The business currently
employs two homeless people as baristas, who had been trained under the
self-support program of the city administration. It was a 3-month training at
the Home of Bohyeon, a public shelter for the homeless located just next to the
café in Yeongdeungpo-gu.
Every day, the café receives more or less 200 customers. The
staffs receive 500,000 won ($450) per month as salary, plus the profits earned.
Won, who left his family and ran away from home after his company was
bankrupted, said that he dreams of obtaining certification on coffee roasting
and become an international barista someday. In that way, he can start anew and
see his family again.
A second outlet of Café
Espresso of my Life is set to open early next year at Jongno-gu, where Won and
the other barista are posed to be promoted as managers. And I personally hope people traveling to Seoul will take support the business, considering that it'll be located in a popular area among tourists.
Aside from the café, the city government also holds
self-support trainings for hotel management and photography, in collaboration
with notable personalities in the field. KORAIL, the public railway company,
also extends its cooperation by picking dozens of homeless people in the
streets and providing them with six-month jobs as luggage movers or cleaners in
the Seoul Station. Wage and housing are provided by the government.
Inspiring.
Isn’t it lovely to see people seeing hope in others who refuse
to see it for themselves? It warms my heart to know that there are still
efforts like this to help the needy ones in a society tagged as one of the most
successful ones in the world. The government focuses on the improvement of those lacking. They don't just provide hope, but strength and inspiration as well. It's like they're saying "Hey guys, we are going to the top and we're all in this together!" Some people find hope because others are willing to give it to them. It makes me happy that the city government of Seoul knows that so well.
But the best thing here for me though is that there is no spoon-feeding
happening in this kind of set-up. Sure, there may be hidden lapses and flaws,
but what matters is that projects are implemented to “try to help the homeless become
independent and help themselves,” as said by City Health and Welfare Chief Kim
Kyung Ho.
I know it is a difficult undertaking; but what probably makes this work
is the fact that this is a give-and-take process. The city government does
everything they can to help the homeless, and the homeless willingly accepts
the challenge and work hard to achieve the administration’s goal for them. They
understand that they are responsible for their own lives and are thankful for
the hope other people finds for them.
They don’t take advantage and literally depend on others for
their living. We can perhaps attribute this to the ‘Korean man’s dignity’
attitude, but I think it’s more of the fact that they know their limits.
This process, I believe, is the reason behind the city’s
success. Seoul isn’t perfect, let’s all admit that; but these kinds of
redemptions compensate. To me, it’s like witnessing the real concept of ‘bayanihan’
(communal work). No one gets to be left behind. Everyone takes part in the
improvement of their society.
.
.
.
When will this ever happen in my own country?
No comments:
Post a Comment