Woongjin Preed Life, Korea's No. 1 funeral mutual-aid service corporations, said on the 26th that it held an event in the Kyrgyz Republic to teach Korean funeral culture to Korean compatriots.
Hosted by the Korean Association in Kyrgyzstan with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Overseas Koreans Agency and joint participation by the Seonggyungwan, the event was arranged to promote Korea's funeral and memorial culture to Korean communities abroad. On the 22nd at the Sofia Hotel in Bishkek, about 300 local Koreans and Koryoin participated.
Woongjin Preed Life dispatched a professional funeral director to enhance the cultural pride of the compatriot community and to practice the corporations' social responsibility (CSR). It provided education on the overall scope of traditional Korean funerals, including encoffining procedures, dressing the deceased in ceremonial shrouds, and ancestral rites etiquette. It also provided funeral supplies and souvenirs for attendee participation. This reflected the educational needs of the Koryoin community, where the transmission of traditional culture has been difficult as generations have continued since forced relocation.
A demonstration of Woongjin Preed Life's design-patented service, "Hanji Gungjung Daryeom," followed. Hanji Gungjung Daryeom is a ceremonial service that modernly reinterprets the royal mortuary tradition, using hanji cone hats colored by religion to tenderly honor the deceased like flowers. Through a demonstration that added the dignity and aesthetics of traditional hanji, it conveyed the beauty of Korea's funeral and memorial culture. Attendees also asked about traditional etiquette and procedures that are hard to encounter in daily life.
A Woongjin Preed Life official said, "It was a meaningful event where we directly witnessed the aspirations of local Korean and Koryoin compatriots to preserve traditional culture," adding, "We will continue to strengthen solidarity with overseas compatriot communities and fulfill our social responsibility as a 'K-funeral culture leading corporations' that conveys the value of Korean funeral culture to the world."