CHILDREN WITH BIG HEARTS

[Anchor Lead]

Recently, two young siblings secretly left a piggy bank and a handwritten letter at a police patrol unit in Gongju, Chungcheongnamdo Province. The brothers asked the money they saved to buy a computer game console, some one million won, to be used for neighbors in need.

[Pkg]

December 2021, on a bitter cold, snowy day... Two elementary schoolers approach a police patrol unit holding a paper bag. They open the front door but quickly turn away to avoid being seen by anyone. Police officers came out to check, but they were long gone with just the bag left behind.

[Soundbite] Yoon Yeo-seon(Gongju Police Station) : "They were holding a heavy bag. I was heading out to open the door for them but they just left."

Inside the bag were three piggy banks and a two-page handwritten letter. The students wrote that they saved the money to buy a game console. They asked the money instead be used to help people in need. The piggy banks had one million 8,000 won in cash. The police tracked down the students by asking around at nearby schools based on a name written on the piggy bank. The donation came from two brothers, aged 10 and 12, who have been saving up for 2 years.

[Soundbite] (Father of the boys) : "I asked them where they wanted to donate the money and they said the fire station or police. Then the older one said police officers would know better about people going through hard times."

Police handed the donation, along with some money of its own, to a local charity, the Chungnam branch of Community Chest of Korea. They also decided to award a certificate of commendation to the two boys. The brothers’ heartwarming deed provides much needed comfort and inspiration to all at a time of being worn out by the pandemic.