Army commends soldier helping senior during leave

The army soldier in a video helping a senior collecting recycled paper that had recently gone viral will be receiving a certificate of commendation from the division commander.

The army announced on Tuesday that private Lee Seok-gyu will be receiving a commendation certificate from the vision commander on Jan 11. Lee is currently serving as machine gunner at the mobile company at the division 32 of brigade 98, located in Sejong City.

The video was reported on the “News of the Army Training Center" Facebook page on Friday. In the video, on Friday afternoon, Lee approaches a senior struggling to put a stack of recycled paper together around the Yeongdeungpo area in Seoul. “I was sitting in a nearby café and saw a soldier helping the senior. It was a freezing day, and I was very touched by how he did not hesitate to help the woman,” the posting said.

Lee had been sitting in the café at the end of his leave before returning to the army. He saw the situation and went out to help the woman when there was no one else to help her. Lee was eligible to use his final leave for an extended period, but he decided to keep his leave short so that he could participate in the cold winter training (Jan. 9-13). During his leave, he helped the senior and gained public attention. After the training, Lee will take final leave on Jan. 13-27 and be discharged on Feb. 2.

“We have decided to commend Lee for his good deed, which has contributed to building a good and trustworthy army,” said the army.

“I feel bashful about being commended because I feel it’s what any soldier safeguarding the lives and assets of the people would do,” said Lee.


Hyo-Ju Son hjson@donga.com