MV Sewol Ferry Disaster Memorials Part 1

Jinhwan Lee (Class 5)

Jinhwan Lee was born on the 29th of January, 1997. He was 17 when he died.

Jinhwan was the eldest of three sisters and brothers. He was like a father to them, because their parents had divorced when Jinhwan was young, and his father moved away. Despite all that, Jinhwan stayed strong and still spent some time with his father, usually playing soccer with him. He was popular at school, among classmates and the female students. This was because of his sweet, gentle nature, and his thoughfullness. He was very energetic and bright, always up for a hug. He also stood up for those who were bullied and defended his friends. Many teachers also liked him because of the respect he had for others and his deep thinking. Jinhwan's best friend was Seokjoon Lee from the same class. He spent his free time working part-time at a store, and managed to gain enough money to fund the trip, and buy gifts for his siblings. Jinhwan had dreamed of becoming a famous soccer player, but he forgot about it after hearing that there are no schools for soccer players. He decided to he wanted to become a P.E teacher instead. A week before the trip, he and his family had gone to watch the cherry blossoms. Jinhwan had asked an artist to paint him in front of the cherry trees, he looked so happy.

During the sinking, Jinhwan borrowed his friends' phone to call his mother one last time. ''Mom, I'm wearing a life jacket. We are waiting because our teacher told us to wait.'' The call was cut short.

His body was recovered and returned to his family. He now rests at Ansan Sky Memorial Park.