Get Seung Yeon back home to Korea!

*한국말 버전은 아래 "updates"에 있습니다*

A healthy 24 year old Seung Yeon came to Los Angeles April 2023 with big and exciting plans - a culinary internship / study abroad from South Korea. Unexpectedly in July 2023, Seung Yeon suffered a massive stroke resulting in a long hospitalization in a foreign country and needing 24 hour care. She is having to relearn how to do the simple basic things of breathing on her own, eating, talking and moving her arms and legs.

When her parents in Korea received the phone call, they almost ignored it thinking it was a scam. They couldn't fathom that their young and healthy daughter, who was in a foreign country by herself for an adventure, was at the time considered in "critical condition." They flew immediately the next day from Seoul to Los Angeles, and have been living in hotels and using uber. In a country with a language and cultural barrier, they've been doing their absolute best to keep up with the constantly changing and complex American medical system to understand the current status and medical plan for their daughter.

This gofund me is to help raise money for Seung Yeon and her parents to cover costs including:

This last ticket item being the most important. Being far from home in a foreign country, the Lees and the medical team all agree the best next step would be to take Seung Yeon back to Korea where they will have more social support as well as decreased financial burdens. Seung Yeon is currently working hard to become medically and physically stable for a commercial flight home. Although the most ideal option would have been an air ambulance, Seung Yeon's family was quoted ~ $80K for the flight which was not feasible. With Seung Yeon improving we are hoping that she will be able to take a commercial flight home.

If you are unable to contribute money at this time, please share with others. Thank you! But please - Read below a message from Seung Yeon's Mom and Dad:

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A message from Seung Yeon's Mom and Dad :

My daughter was a quiet child who never got sick and loved to help others. She has been a longtime fan of Highlight (formerly the Kpop group BEAST). She was a homebody and liked being at home, but she also liked experiencing new things so she loved traveling. She learnt to cook in order to achieve her dream of becoming a chef since she was in junior high, and she majored in the culinary arts in her senior high as well. She applied for an internship in the US when she got into college to further her studies in business management and gain more expert knowledge as well as getting to know a new culture.

She was so excited and nervous before she left for the States, but she adjusted well after arriving and made friends and was doing well. Then all of a sudden, we got the news that our daughter was not well and we could not believe it. At first, we did not believe it because there was a similar voice phishing scam going around in Korea. We asked the embassy, and our daughter’s friend even went to the hospital to confirm but even then, we could not believe it. It all seemed like it was a lie and something out of a story from some another world.

When we met our daughter after arriving in the U.S, she was not conscious, and we were just very grateful that she was alive even though she had to depend on so many medical devices. She is still dependent on a ventilator and cannot leave her bed, but my daughter is conscious now. She has a lot to say now that she can move her hands and feet.

The first things she communicated to us was that she wanted to go home. She accomplished this by holding up her hands with someone calling out the vowels and consonants one by one to put together each word. We too want to go back to Korea but with our daughter’s current condition, she cannot fly on a regular airplane. When they told me it would be approximately $80,000.00 to rent an air ambulance, I fault myself at times like this and think why I didn't make a lot of money, but the reality is that I just do not have that kind of money. I honestly don’t know how much more money we will need to treat our daughter and provide rehabilitation therapy for her, any amount you're willing to contribute would be greatly appreciated. If you are unable to contribute money at this time, please share with others. Thank you for listening to our story!