Global Families of Gwangju (GFOG): Meet Kelly and Jeff

Written by Namhee Cho 

The number of internationals in Gwangju has grown significantly. Whether they are temporary tourists or permanent residents of the city, nowadays internationals have created more opportunities for Koreans to speak foreign languages on the streets of Gwangju. A few areas in town even resemble Itaewon by attracting more people from abroad than locals. Often these hot places become a birth place of some of the foreign groups and communities that develop from sharing common interests and goals.

The founders of Global Families of Gwangju(GFOG), Kelly Kim and Jeffrey Hamilton have apparent common grounds. They are both married to a Korean spouse, they share the office together, and they love and frequently think about Gwangju. At first, the group was only a small gathering, a barbeque for five international families within their office. Their primary intention was to integrate western family culture into Korean society and, thus, celebrating big western events, such as Easter and Halloween, which were a prime part of their cultural upbringing. The gatherings gradually grew as more colleagues at the settled in Gwangju.

“There are more than 20 staff members in the university who have a Korean-International family” said Kelly without a surprise. Since 2009, they have organized regular gatherings among those multinational families in order to integrate both Korean and other cultures together. It was 2013 when they had their first event involving more than a few hundred not only international but also local residents. Kelly and Jeff found last year’s Halloween was great fun and fruitful. With the support from Robert Holley, the founder and head of Kwangju Foreign School who provided the venue and facilities for the event, the Harry Potter-themed Halloween celebration was a big hit.

During the day, children could participate in various events such as costume plays, guessing flavors of Bertie Bott’s Jelly Beans (magical beans from Harry Potter) and watching the Gwangju Performance Project’s performance. It was like a festival for both local and international families, especially for children to get along together and exchange culture. Because all events are held in English, it gained attention from Korean families hoping their children be exposed at an environment where they can meet people from abroad.

Kelly and Jeff are the only members of the organizing committee and it seems that they do all the work from planning to organizing the events. Of course, their friends and colleagues give them plenty of hands. However, the events would not be possible without the help of the Korean volunteers – mainly their students from the university. “75%~80% of the participants are Korean and some of them are our regular Korean families joining the event. We always seek more assistance, especially for administrative issues in Korean,” said Kelly.

“We are now at the breaking moment,” said Jeffy with a little concern. To decide whether to expand the group or not, Kelly and Jeff need more hands. Organizing such big events twice a year requires commitment and sacrifice. However, Kelly and Jeff have dedicated themselves to creating better community. At first, all the funds for the events were coming out of Kelly and Jeff’s pockets. It has been only two years since GFOG first received subsidies from the Global Community Support program of the Gwangju International Center. They still seek more assistance from the community of any sort.

On Saturday, April 23rd April, “GFOG’s GREAT EGG HUNT” was held for Easter at the Chosun University Amphitheater. To enjoy various games like potato sack races, fishing, and egg hunts as well as crafts and decorating activities, children and their parents could gather and have a pleasant family time. No other organization in Gwangju offers international family oriented events like GFOG.

Find out more about GFOG on Facebook or website, https://gfog.wordpress.com/

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