by REERA YOO | @reeraboo
editor@charactermedia.com
Kim Yuna, former Olympic figure skating champion and international UNICEF goodwill ambassador, has donated $100,000 to help the young victims of the Nepal earthquake, which has killed more than 4,000 people since Saturday.
The Korean Committee for UNICEF, a United Nations program that provides humanitarian care to children in developing countries, said in a press release that Kim’s donation will go towards providing food, drinking water, health care and protection to the children affected by the magnitude-7.8 earthquake.
On April 27, Kim Yuna wrote on Twitter, “UNICEF is taking action to help the children in Nepal who are going through a painful time because of the recent earthquake. Everyone, please lend a helping hand!”
Her tweet also provided the link to Korea’s UNICEF homepage.
유니세프는 이번 지진으로 큰 고통에 놓인 네팔 어린이들을 돕고 있습니다. 여러분도 함께해주세요#HelpNepalChildren To help http://t.co/t8QVR7FoDO
— Yuna Kim (@Yunaaaa) April 27, 2015
This is not the first time the former Olympian has donated to help children recover from a natural disaster. Prior to becoming a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, Kim donated $100,000 to the victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. She also donated her prize money from the World Championships to the children affected by the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami, according to TV Report. Last year, Kim gave $100,000 to the survivors and bereaved families of the Sewol ferry disaster.
Kim, 24, retired from competitive skating after earning a silver medal at the Sochi 2014 Olympics and gold at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. She is now an ambassador for the upcoming PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics.
On Monday, South Korea’s foreign ministry pledged to donate $1 million to Nepal earthquake relief efforts and announced that it will soon dispatch 40 search and rescue workers to the quake-hit country.
The Korean Red Cross said it will be donating $10,000 to Nepal as well as thousands of blankets and emergency kits. The organization is also currently prepping to send a team of medical workers to Nepal.
According to the Associated Press, this is the most devastating earthquake in Nepal since 1934. Tens of thousands of families have been left homeless in the aftermath of the disaster.
To learn which charity organizations are soliciting donations for relief efforts in Nepal, click here.
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Featured image via TV Report
