Mailbox of peace

Section 1. Memor ies of Korea Mai lbox of Peace 016 017 Korea Foundation & US Peace Corps KF COVID-19 Survival Box Gratitude Letter Col lection My wife Barrie and I served together as part of K - III , from 1967 to 1969 . We were assigned to teach English in the town of Yecheon in GyungSangBuk- Do . We lived for the entire two years with the family of Lee Dong Su , an English teacher in my school , and his wife , Pak Ok Ja , a dressmaker , and their three children . Each day we were there , we loved Korea more and each day we grew closer to this family until , long before we returned home to New York we had in- deed become part of their family , and they ours . The warmth , love and generosity of our family , and the welcoming openness of all the Koreans we came to know has done more than we can say to in- form the way we have lived our lives in this world these fifty - three years . We are better people , better spouses , better parents , better citizens of our country and of the world than we would have been . And , very importantly , we were much better children to our own parents . We truly believe that we learned so much more than we taught and received so much more than we gave . This latest example of uniquely Korean kindness , the Covid 19 Survival Box , moved us greatly , brought wide smiles to our faces . and kohyang sengak to our hearts . Please accept our deep thanks and pass them along as well to all your col- leagues who helped bring this small , wonderful thing about . Looking forward to better times for all of us . Thank you for your thank you present of the coronavirus masks and other materials this fall . My wife ( who is also Korean ) and I appreciated the gift very much . I had the honor of serving in your country both as a soldier 1963 - 64 in the DMZ and as a Peace Corps Volunteer 1971 - 1973 in group K - 19 . I enjoyed both experiences immensely and have had several opportunities over the years to visit again with my wife to visit her family . The subsequent visits allowed me to observe the continuing growth of the Korean economy and the wealth of the people . It is truly miraculous . My wife and I are avid baseball fans so we were delighted this year to watch the KBO regular season and the post season resulting in the NC Dinos cham- pionship . What a great time that was for us here in the US . Thank you again for the gift . It is always good to realize the appreciation Ko- reans feel for the Peace Corps but it was truly we volunteers who were the real winners in the experience . My time in Korea was one of the most rewarding ones of my life . Sincerely , “We loved Korea more and each day” Jerry Raik , K - 3 “It is truly miraculous” John Gibbons , K - 19 Jerry & Barrie Raik John Gibbons