MDream Children’s Home: What’s it all about?

By Emma Dooley

On a rainy morning in April, Gwangju News met the Secretary General of Mudeung Dream Garden (MDream) Children’s Home, Chung Eunkang. Located near Mudeung Mountain, MDream has been helping the people of Gwangju in one way or another for over seven decades. Set up by Chung’s great-grandfather, Chung Sun-mo, MDream first opened its doors in 1928 as a homeless shelter, but was transformed into an orphanage in 1956 following the Korean War.

In the early days, as many as 300 orphans of war were squashed into the rooms of MDream. Nowadays the number of children hovers around 80 and they range in age from two to 18 years old. Not all the current residents of MDream are orphans: some of them ended up there as a result of child abuse or neglect, divorce or teen pregnancy. MDream is arranged to provide as homely an environment as possible, and every child lives with between 10 and 14 others in a number of self-contained, four-bedroom apartments. The kids in each apartment are looked after by a group of 16 “aunties”, dedicated female staff members who work alternating 24-hour shifts. There are also six office staff, three kitchen workers, a nurse, and the MDream Director, who is also Chung’s father, to cater to the children’s’ needs.

In fact, Eunkang is the fourth generation of the Chung family to dedicate himself to MDream and its residents. Born in Switzerland and educated there and in the US, Eunkang worked as a social worker in the area of mental health before his return to Korea.

He came back for MDream and has been holding the reins there as Secretary General since 2009. He loves his job, but it doesn’t come without challenges. He says there are two significant obstacles he and the other staff face on a daily basis. First, he finds it difficult to see the effects of his work on the kids and whether or not they are learning or changing, so mired is he in the mountain of paperwork necessary to obtain and maintain the government funding of MDream. The second and potentially more hazardous obstacle he faces day-to-day is that some of the kids, in particular the older ones, resent the fact that they live at MDream, intensely dislike the place, and indulge in fantasies about living in a “normal” home. This is especially difficult for those kids who are not actually orphans and may even see their parents from time to time. This is the reason behind the homely set-up of MDream, as well as the plethora of clubs and activities that are available for the kids to partake in.

Since the beginning of his time as Secretary General of MDream, Eunkang has tried to get as many foreigners involved as possible. At present there are photography, baking, yoga, drama, guitar, board games and sports clubs run by a troupe of enthusiastic volunteers. Eunkang feels that the frequent visits by foreigners are beneficial for both sides: the kids have a reason to learn and speak English and also feel that they have a friend from the other side of the world, while the volunteers can take home a very positive experience from their time in Korea.

In fact, the kids are now so used to the kindness of others and getting help free of charge that they can sometimes forget to be thankful for all that they do have. In order to combat this, Eunkang and the other staff are trying to teach the kids about the importance of giving back to their community. Now, when they receive a donation, they may use the money to put on a show for a local elderly facility, make a donation to a charity or use the money for something that will benefit everyone at MDream. The kids also took part in a recent flea market and are now giving free Korean classes to foreigners!

Right now, MDream is trying to expand its pre-kindergarten program. Currently running Monday to Friday from 10am to 12 noon, this program caters for one- to three-year-olds and aims to get them in the habit of learning, studying and reading, so that when they get to school they’ll be prepared. Eunkang hopes to expand the program in the near future to include afternoon activities, as well as getting some more English-speaking volunteers involved to play with and talk to the kids, thus exposing them to English from an early age.

This writer has been involved with MDream for some time now, and the days I have spent there have been the most amusing, enjoyable and rewarding of my time in Korea. I will treasure them always. The kids are hilarious, cute and inspirational, and always up for a bit of fun!

If you would like to get involved with MDream, make a donation, or simply find out more about this amazing place, visit www.mdream.org, join the Facebook group MDream Garden or contact Eunkang himself at silverkang@hotmail.com .

On May 5, which is also Children’s Day, there will be a fundraising event for MDream at the Gwangju FC home game at the World Cup Stadium. Tickets are free, but a donation is requested. Tickets can be picked up from Speakeasy or Zeppelin’s bars downtown or at the stadium on the day of the game.