Tributes pour in for voice actress Kang Hee-sun, beloved as 'Shin-chan's mom'

Online tributes flooded social media Saturday following the death of voice actress Kang Hee-sun, best known for voicing Bong Mi-sun — the mother in the animated series "Crayon Shin-chan" — and for providing the announcement voice on Seoul and Busan subway lines.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon posted a tribute on Facebook titled "A warm voice that filled the daily lives of Seoul citizens — we pray for the repose of voice actress Kang Hee-sun," writing that Kang had "accompanied the footsteps of Seoul citizens as the announcement voice on subway lines 1 through 8."

Oh added that he had been left speechless upon learning she had recorded subway announcements even from her hospital bed while battling illness. "I will long remember that warm voice that quietly stayed by our side in the everyday lives of Seoul citizens," he wrote, offering his condolences.

Tributes also spread across online platforms. On YouTube, videos compiling Bong Mi-sun's most memorable lines and scenes drew a wave of mourning comments — among them a clip in which the character cries out while rescuing Shin-chan: "What kind of parent would stand by while their child is in danger?"

Comments on the videos included messages such as "I'm going to miss that mom's voice so much," "It feels like my own mother has left," and "It feels as though a piece of my childhood has gone with her. Thank you for everything." Last year, Kang moved many fans when she said, "I truly love being a voice actress. I love Shin-chan's mom so much."

Kang died of a chronic illness at around 2:10 a.m. Saturday at Inje University Sanggye Paik Hospital. She was 66. She is survived by a son and a daughter, Ahn Eun-seok and Ahn Ji-seon. A memorial altar has been set up at Room 31 of the Seoul St. Mary's Hospital funeral home. The funeral procession is scheduled for 7:40 a.m. Monday, with burial at Yongin Park Honorstone.