SEOUL, Republic of Korea — Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District volunteered to help make kimchi for local charities Nov. 22 as part of the District’s Good Neighbor Program.
Seoul Jung-gu District Office made “Winter Kimchi of Love” for elderly and needy citizens at a small park located near FED. Volunteers from FED participated in order to promote friendship between the Republic of Korea and the U.S.
“I appreciate FED’s support for kimchi making for the elderly and needy in Jung-gu,” said District Mayor Choi Chang-sik. “I’m impressed that you’ve been volunteering for this for four years.”
Choi came by with his wife and made kimchi at the table with Sam Adkins, Chief of FED Construction Division, and other volunteers from FED.
“As part of the Good Neighbor Program, we at FED have been involved in the event over the years,” said Adkins. “We are a part of this community and we want to give back a little to the folks that live here.
About 1,600 heads of cabbage was made into kimchi this year by all of the volunteers combined. They filled 400 boxes totaling about five tons of kimchi.
Members of the Jung-gu Saemaul Women’s Club new all there is to know about kimchi making and were willing to help the volunteers from FED.
“When you start making the kimchi, you position yourself next to the friendliest Korean lady you can find and start,” said Louis Gud, intern with FED. “The ladies are extremely happy to have you participate and will proceed to feed you fresh kimchi every five minutes.”
It has been over one year since Gud joined the FED team in Korea and about a month after arriving last year he was asked to volunteer. He is now very skilled at making kimchi.
“The first time I tried I could not help but getting yelled at by the ladies and told that I was smearing the kimchi sauce wrong,” said Gud. “However, this year I am delighted to say that I was not once yelled at for how I made kimchi.”
Many of the volunteers from FED had participated in this event in previous years and knew what to expect. Brian Cohill, from Construction Division, Quality Assurance Branch, is a veteran kimchi maker. Even though he enjoys the opportunity to make it, he does not eat kimchi. Today he made an exception.
“The hospitality of the local volunteers was too much to overcome, and I had one bite of kimchi today,” said Cohill. “It will most likely be next year until I have another.”
Cohill also does not mind the messy process that kimchi making involves. It requires a plastic rain jacket, elbow length rubber gloves, and plastic hair cap making the volunteers resemble doctors going into surgery. Even after all of that some still find that it is hard to stay clean.
“After the kimchi is done you look to find that you have failed to keep your clothes clean and just prepare to clean the stain out later,” said Gud.
Despite being messy and the unusual taste of kimchi, FED volunteers have come out to support this local effort every year and have had an enjoyable experience working with the local citizens.
“I really do like getting out, meeting new people and supporting FED and the local community,” said Cohill. “I see myself supporting this event in the future. It is a great opportunity to meet the people and enjoy the culture of our gracious hosts, all while supporting a worthwhile cause.”