It was beaglemania at the Beagle Rescue Network’s shelter in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, when I visited in July 2019 with longtime animal volunteer Jeong Buyun. A magical place full of wagging tails, inquisitive noses and muddy paws. I took the train from Yongsan Station in Seoul early one Saturday morning, arrived at Gyeryong KTX …
A big beagly day: The story of Beagle Rescue Network Korea Read More »
“Don’t give up. You can find Pandora. She is out there and she is waiting for you. She is trying to get home. I lost my own dog when I foolishly left her on a leash unattended for a few minutes in front of a grocery store (outside Korea).” The online message was from a …
Pandora the lost Jindo dog: Looking back 10 years later Read More »
There’s a catchy song about train safety that takes me back in time, back to Professor Ted Wallin’s marketing class at Sejong University in Seoul. Professor Wallin taught in the Sejong-Syracuse MBA program for more than six years before retiring in 2016. His going-away party was streamed on social media, and that’s how I found …
After Korea: Professor Ted Wallin from Syracuse, New York Read More »
Adam Czelusta and I first crossed paths around 2014, when we both did some work for Groove magazine’s 100th edition. I got to interview human rights champion Yiombi Thona, and Adam’s photography accompanied the article. Later, Adam graciously allowed me to use one of his photos with my follow-up blog post. More recently, when revamping …
Powering through: Self-taught photographer Adam Czelusta Read More »
It’s taken some time to put together this third post about Japanese military sexual slavery and the survivors at the House of Sharing in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province. A Korean friend helped me gather information for it, and I also got assistance from a bilingual personal assistant service. Ji Geunook, the friend who helped me, is knowledgeable …
House of Sharing update, part 3: The whistleblowers Read More »
On Wednesday, May 5, protesters gathered outside the former site of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul as they do every Wednesday. The turnout may have been higher because of the Children’s Day holiday. They were calling for justice for the survivors of Japanese military sexual slavery — for Japan to make a genuine apology, acknowledge …
House of Sharing update, part 2: Reaching the world Read More »
“I was not paid when I was in the comfort station in China,” said Lee Ok-Seon Halmeoni. “That’s why I didn’t have any money to buy a train ticket in order to go home, or even I didn’t know which way I should go … to come back to Korea. … So in order to …
House of Sharing update, part 1: A survivor speaks Read More »
When Sonia Knapp set out for Korea in 1998, it was supposed to be short term. A New Orleans native, she was teaching at a high school in Moab, Utah, and getting tired of it. She didn’t fit in with the local community, “didn’t like living in a fishbowl,” and wanted to try something new. …
A life of adventure: One year in Korea becomes a career Read More »
Despite its increasing popularity as a humane, effective way of controlling feral cat populations, trap-neuter-release has its detractors. Cats get in people’s trash, said Kerri Burrows, who spearheaded the TNR project at Yongsan Garrison along with Nabiya and the Korean Veterinary Medical Association. “Cats that are unaltered get into fights. All that kind of stuff, right?” …
The cats of Yongsan, part 2: Doing the most good Read More »
Kerri Burrows used to go hiking on Namsan every week. On one hike, she saw a poster about stray cats. She couldn’t read it very well, but one of her Korean friends translated. “And it essentially said, you know, the cats are part of our community, we want to take care of them, please don’t be …
The cats of Yongsan, part 1: How one military wife took on TNR Read More »