A Korean Olympian gives heart to Cambodian kids

Gymnast Son Gives Heart to Hospitalized Cambodian Kids 

Rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae, who has gained national fame since her successful performance at the London Olympics this summer, visited Sejong General Hospital in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province to cheer up Cambodian children on Wednesday.

The kids, who all had free heart surgery at the hospital, are the beneficiaries of a project led by the Salvation Army, Kookmin Bank and the Financial Supervisory Service.

Rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon-jae meets Cambodian kids who had free heart surgery at a hospital in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province on Wednesday.

Due to congenital heart problems, the kids knew they were living on borrowed time before the project organizers stepped in and gave them back their futures by funding the medical expenses they were unlikely to ever have been able to afford themselves.

Since 1995, the Salvation Army has helped hundreds of children have heart surgery, including not only patients in Korea, but also those from Cambodia, China, Mongolia, Russia, the Philippines and Vietnam.