South Korean popular singer Kim Jang-hoon has received the U.S. President’s Volunteer Service Award, his management company said Monday.
Kim was given the award during a concert in Los Angeles on Saturday (local time) through a local concert organizer, the management company said.
Kim, known as the “angel of donation,” was selected as the winner of the award by the White House for his contributions to the South Korean community and the United States, according to the organizer. The White House may have evaluated the fact that Kim’s domestic donations amounted to 15 billion won, that he donated all the proceeds from his concerts in the U.S. and China to local communities, and that he placed ads for public interests in leading U.S. newspapers.
Kim Jang-hoon
Kim said he hoped his concerts and donations will contribute to the promotion of friendship between South Korea and the United States.
Before his concert at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, Kim donated his guarantees for the concert and ads aired in the U.S. through a local agency.
The rock-ballad singer also donated $50,000 to an organization that treats drug addicts in the United States and $8,000 to a charity organization run by a local church for South Korean residents.
Kim’s management company said Kim received five awards from the U.S. administration, including the President’s Volunteer Service Award, during his American trip. He will hold a press conference after he returns to Seoul on Thursday to speak about the awards he received and his plan to establish a foundation for “Dokdo Land,” it added.
The singer is known for his love of the South Korean island of Dokdo and his contribution to let the world know that Dokdo is South Korea’s territory by advertising the islets in the American media, including the New York Times. (Yonhap News)