Kim Juhee was born on March 29, 1997. She was a member of the 10th grade class #10 at Danwon High School in Ansan, South Korea. She lived for 17 years and 18 days.
Juhee was a good student; she always studied hard. She was talented at photography and creative writing, and she was also good at science. When she was in 4th grade, her dad died in a car accident, but she became a stronger person because of it. She was a true mama's girl, through and through.
Juhee was a victim of the Sewol Ferry tragedy. The ferry Sewol was en route to Jeju Island from Incheon, South Korea, when it capsized on April 16, 2014. The majority of the 476 people on board were 10th graders from Danwon High School who were traveling to Jeju Island for a school field trip. When the ship started to sink, the crew ordered everyone to stay in their cabins and await help. Juhee and most of the Danwon students on board obeyed the crew and remained in their cabins, passing the time by taking pictures and joking around with their friends. However, the coast guard only rescued those who'd come out on deck and didn't even attempt to rescue anyone inside the ship. The Korean government, ashamed at how the event unfolded, blocked volunteer rescuers and made excuses as to why rescue efforts could not continue. By the time they started recovery efforts, they were only finding bodies. There were hundreds of high schoolers, teachers and other passengers inside the ship and not a single one of them survived. The majority of them were still alive during the three hours it took for the Sewol to sink, recording videos of their ordeal and banging on the windows, begging to be saved - but they all eventually drowned or died of hypothermia. Those kids had trusted adults with their lives and were literally left to die. 304 people died in total, with 250 of them being Danwon High School students. The Sewol Ferry sinking was one of the most heartbreaking and senseless maritime tragedies to have ever happened. The students’ loved ones are still looking for answers as to why those 250 beautiful children had to die…and those answers may never come.
A day after the sinking, a Facebook account belonging to one of the students posted a status mentioning five missing students, saying they were all still alive in the ship and to send help. Juhee's name was mentioned in the status, along with four of her best friends. Juhee's mother immediately went to the mobile carrier dispatched at Paengmok Port and asked the employee to confirm the location of where the Facebook status was posted. The mobile carrier employee was able to confirm that the status was posted from the site of the sinking, in the ocean. Juhee's mother then took that information to headquarters, begging them to rescue her daughter, but they told her it was impossible to have sent anything after the accident, and that the Facebook post was a hoax. Juhee's mother believed this and was heartbroken. Juhee's body was recovered on April 22, but a DNA test was not done and identifying features weren't published, so she was left unidentified for two days, much to the heartbreak of her family. When her mom was finally able to identify her daughter's body, Juhee was seen wearing a black T-shirt, black leggings and socks, and her body didn't show signs of having been deceased in the water for a week. Several days after her body was identified, Juhee's mother was sent photos from immediately after the sinking, taken on another student's camera. In those photos, Juhee was wearing a completely different outfit than the one she was recovered in. This lead to the realization among families that their children may not have all drowned when the ship sank, and that some of them were still alive in air pockets in the ship - meaning that the Facebook post may have been real. The implications of that possible truth - that some of the kids were alive for days, waiting for a rescue that never came - are far too painful to think about.
Juhee's body was recovered on April 22 and returned to her loving family.
Thank you to Debra for sponsoring Juhee's memorial!
Juhee was a good student; she always studied hard. She was talented at photography and creative writing, and she was also good at science. When she was in 4th grade, her dad died in a car accident, but she became a stronger person because of it. She was a true mama's girl, through and through.
Juhee was a victim of the Sewol Ferry tragedy. The ferry Sewol was en route to Jeju Island from Incheon, South Korea, when it capsized on April 16, 2014. The majority of the 476 people on board were 10th graders from Danwon High School who were traveling to Jeju Island for a school field trip. When the ship started to sink, the crew ordered everyone to stay in their cabins and await help. Juhee and most of the Danwon students on board obeyed the crew and remained in their cabins, passing the time by taking pictures and joking around with their friends. However, the coast guard only rescued those who'd come out on deck and didn't even attempt to rescue anyone inside the ship. The Korean government, ashamed at how the event unfolded, blocked volunteer rescuers and made excuses as to why rescue efforts could not continue. By the time they started recovery efforts, they were only finding bodies. There were hundreds of high schoolers, teachers and other passengers inside the ship and not a single one of them survived. The majority of them were still alive during the three hours it took for the Sewol to sink, recording videos of their ordeal and banging on the windows, begging to be saved - but they all eventually drowned or died of hypothermia. Those kids had trusted adults with their lives and were literally left to die. 304 people died in total, with 250 of them being Danwon High School students. The Sewol Ferry sinking was one of the most heartbreaking and senseless maritime tragedies to have ever happened. The students’ loved ones are still looking for answers as to why those 250 beautiful children had to die…and those answers may never come.
A day after the sinking, a Facebook account belonging to one of the students posted a status mentioning five missing students, saying they were all still alive in the ship and to send help. Juhee's name was mentioned in the status, along with four of her best friends. Juhee's mother immediately went to the mobile carrier dispatched at Paengmok Port and asked the employee to confirm the location of where the Facebook status was posted. The mobile carrier employee was able to confirm that the status was posted from the site of the sinking, in the ocean. Juhee's mother then took that information to headquarters, begging them to rescue her daughter, but they told her it was impossible to have sent anything after the accident, and that the Facebook post was a hoax. Juhee's mother believed this and was heartbroken. Juhee's body was recovered on April 22, but a DNA test was not done and identifying features weren't published, so she was left unidentified for two days, much to the heartbreak of her family. When her mom was finally able to identify her daughter's body, Juhee was seen wearing a black T-shirt, black leggings and socks, and her body didn't show signs of having been deceased in the water for a week. Several days after her body was identified, Juhee's mother was sent photos from immediately after the sinking, taken on another student's camera. In those photos, Juhee was wearing a completely different outfit than the one she was recovered in. This lead to the realization among families that their children may not have all drowned when the ship sank, and that some of them were still alive in air pockets in the ship - meaning that the Facebook post may have been real. The implications of that possible truth - that some of the kids were alive for days, waiting for a rescue that never came - are far too painful to think about.
Juhee's body was recovered on April 22 and returned to her loving family.
Thank you to Debra for sponsoring Juhee's memorial!
Kim Juhee was born on March 29, 1997. She was a member of the 10th grade class #10 at Danwon High School in Ansan, South Korea. She lived for 17 years and 18 days.
Juhee was a good student; she always studied hard. She was talented at photography and creative writing, and she was also good at science. When she was in 4th grade, her dad died in a car accident, but she became a stronger person because of it. She was a true mama's girl, through and through.
Juhee was a victim of the Sewol Ferry tragedy. The ferry Sewol was en route to Jeju Island from Incheon, South Korea, when it capsized on April 16, 2014. The majority of the 476 people on board were 10th graders from Danwon High School who were traveling to Jeju Island for a school field trip. When the ship started to sink, the crew ordered everyone to stay in their cabins and await help. Juhee and most of the Danwon students on board obeyed the crew and remained in their cabins, passing the time by taking pictures and joking around with their friends. However, the coast guard only rescued those who'd come out on deck and didn't even attempt to rescue anyone inside the ship. The Korean government, ashamed at how the event unfolded, blocked volunteer rescuers and made excuses as to why rescue efforts could not continue. By the time they started recovery efforts, they were only finding bodies. There were hundreds of high schoolers, teachers and other passengers inside the ship and not a single one of them survived. The majority of them were still alive during the three hours it took for the Sewol to sink, recording videos of their ordeal and banging on the windows, begging to be saved - but they all eventually drowned or died of hypothermia. Those kids had trusted adults with their lives and were literally left to die. 304 people died in total, with 250 of them being Danwon High School students. The Sewol Ferry sinking was one of the most heartbreaking and senseless maritime tragedies to have ever happened. The students’ loved ones are still looking for answers as to why those 250 beautiful children had to die…and those answers may never come.
A day after the sinking, a Facebook account belonging to one of the students posted a status mentioning five missing students, saying they were all still alive in the ship and to send help. Juhee's name was mentioned in the status, along with four of her best friends. Juhee's mother immediately went to the mobile carrier dispatched at Paengmok Port and asked the employee to confirm the location of where the Facebook status was posted. The mobile carrier employee was able to confirm that the status was posted from the site of the sinking, in the ocean. Juhee's mother then took that information to headquarters, begging them to rescue her daughter, but they told her it was impossible to have sent anything after the accident, and that the Facebook post was a hoax. Juhee's mother believed this and was heartbroken. Juhee's body was recovered on April 22, but a DNA test was not done and identifying features weren't published, so she was left unidentified for two days, much to the heartbreak of her family. When her mom was finally able to identify her daughter's body, Juhee was seen wearing a black T-shirt, black leggings and socks, and her body didn't show signs of having been deceased in the water for a week. Several days after her body was identified, Juhee's mother was sent photos from immediately after the sinking, taken on another student's camera. In those photos, Juhee was wearing a completely different outfit than the one she was recovered in. This lead to the realization among families that their children may not have all drowned when the ship sank, and that some of them were still alive in air pockets in the ship - meaning that the Facebook post may have been real. The implications of that possible truth - that some of the kids were alive for days, waiting for a rescue that never came - are far too painful to think about.
Juhee's body was recovered on April 22 and returned to her loving family.
Thank you to Debra for sponsoring Juhee's memorial!
Juhee was a good student; she always studied hard. She was talented at photography and creative writing, and she was also good at science. When she was in 4th grade, her dad died in a car accident, but she became a stronger person because of it. She was a true mama's girl, through and through.
Juhee was a victim of the Sewol Ferry tragedy. The ferry Sewol was en route to Jeju Island from Incheon, South Korea, when it capsized on April 16, 2014. The majority of the 476 people on board were 10th graders from Danwon High School who were traveling to Jeju Island for a school field trip. When the ship started to sink, the crew ordered everyone to stay in their cabins and await help. Juhee and most of the Danwon students on board obeyed the crew and remained in their cabins, passing the time by taking pictures and joking around with their friends. However, the coast guard only rescued those who'd come out on deck and didn't even attempt to rescue anyone inside the ship. The Korean government, ashamed at how the event unfolded, blocked volunteer rescuers and made excuses as to why rescue efforts could not continue. By the time they started recovery efforts, they were only finding bodies. There were hundreds of high schoolers, teachers and other passengers inside the ship and not a single one of them survived. The majority of them were still alive during the three hours it took for the Sewol to sink, recording videos of their ordeal and banging on the windows, begging to be saved - but they all eventually drowned or died of hypothermia. Those kids had trusted adults with their lives and were literally left to die. 304 people died in total, with 250 of them being Danwon High School students. The Sewol Ferry sinking was one of the most heartbreaking and senseless maritime tragedies to have ever happened. The students’ loved ones are still looking for answers as to why those 250 beautiful children had to die…and those answers may never come.
A day after the sinking, a Facebook account belonging to one of the students posted a status mentioning five missing students, saying they were all still alive in the ship and to send help. Juhee's name was mentioned in the status, along with four of her best friends. Juhee's mother immediately went to the mobile carrier dispatched at Paengmok Port and asked the employee to confirm the location of where the Facebook status was posted. The mobile carrier employee was able to confirm that the status was posted from the site of the sinking, in the ocean. Juhee's mother then took that information to headquarters, begging them to rescue her daughter, but they told her it was impossible to have sent anything after the accident, and that the Facebook post was a hoax. Juhee's mother believed this and was heartbroken. Juhee's body was recovered on April 22, but a DNA test was not done and identifying features weren't published, so she was left unidentified for two days, much to the heartbreak of her family. When her mom was finally able to identify her daughter's body, Juhee was seen wearing a black T-shirt, black leggings and socks, and her body didn't show signs of having been deceased in the water for a week. Several days after her body was identified, Juhee's mother was sent photos from immediately after the sinking, taken on another student's camera. In those photos, Juhee was wearing a completely different outfit than the one she was recovered in. This lead to the realization among families that their children may not have all drowned when the ship sank, and that some of them were still alive in air pockets in the ship - meaning that the Facebook post may have been real. The implications of that possible truth - that some of the kids were alive for days, waiting for a rescue that never came - are far too painful to think about.
Juhee's body was recovered on April 22 and returned to her loving family.
Thank you to Debra for sponsoring Juhee's memorial!
Gravesite Details
Name pronunciation: Gim Joo-hee
