The memorial service for 7-year-old Shin Won Young, found dead after being abused with chlorine bleach and cold water douses directly performed by his stepmother and known by his equally complicit biological father, took place on March 21, 49 days after his death (the amount of time believed a soul takes before finally lying to rest), at the Pyeongtaek City Memorial Park.
Seventy people attended the memorial service including bereaved family members, people who lived nearby, and the mayor of Pyeongtaek. Food like rice, seaweed soup, and beef were prepared. On top of that, clothes for Shin Won Young, who died after being doused with chlorine bleach and cold water, were personally made to keep him warm in the after life.
Ryu Jung Hwa gave the eulogy, stating, "Foolish adults wrapped in their wrongful ambitions made you feel lonely for a long time in such a cold and chilly place like that. At the thought of your small hands and feet freezing up on the floor as cold as ice, of you vacantly in the pitch-black bathroom that the harsh air infiltrates makes me feel like my heart will burst," and grew teary eyed.
"I want to entreat no forgiveness for those who failed to protect you," he continued, "but when I look into your clear eyes, it feels as if you've already forgiven them for everything, so my heart rips. I will try to make it so that the bad adults who abuse can no longer live in this world."
The picture used was of Shin Won Young on a bicycle from mid-2014 when he met with his real mother who has visitation rights. He had excitedly played around at his mother's parents' home. His relatives personally put a spoonful of rice into the seaweed soup, looked upon the brightly smiling face of Won Young, and was unable to continue holding back the tears. This started a chain reaction as the others who came to pay their respects began to bring out their handkerchiefs to wipe away their own tears. Parents of children Won Young's age clung to each other as if they had lost their own child. One by one, they rested chrysanthemums before the smiling Won Young.
Mayor Gong said, "We are so sorry toward Won Young. We pray that you will be happy after meeting new parents in the heavens. The city will put in effort so that something like this will never happen again. I want to say my apologies as the representative of the people of this city."
The bereaved families said, "As Won Young's time of death is unclear, possibly the first or second of last month, his biological mother and his relatives already commemorated his 49 days the previous night. We are so grateful for the many people who are remembering Won Young. We strongly hope that there will not be another [child like] Won Young."
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