Seoul's Yeongdeungpo-gu announced Wednesday that it is holding a "Family Caregiving Heart Letter Contest" in partnership with ChildFund Korea's Yeongdeungpo Community Welfare Center.
The contest is open to any district resident who has cared for a family member — or been cared for — due to illness, disability or old age. Participants are invited to write a letter expressing gratitude, regret or love that they were never able to convey during the caregiving experience.
Submissions are accepted through Aug. 7. Residents wishing to participate may submit a letter of one to two A4 pages by mail, in person at the ChildFund Korea Yeongdeungpo Community Welfare Center, or electronically via email or QR code.
Winners will be announced Aug. 18 following a judging process. Six prizes will be awarded in total: a grand prize for one winner (a Shinsegae gift card worth 200,000 won ($136)), two excellence awards (100,000 won each) and three merit awards (50,000 won each). All participants will receive a small commemorative gift, including a wax-coated clay toy and a bookmark. Results will be posted on the district's website and communicated to winners individually.
The contest was organized to raise community awareness of family caregiving households and to spread a culture of empathy around the value of care.
Alongside the contest, the district is continuing to strengthen support for family caregivers. Since January, it has been operating the Yeongdeungpo Integrated Care project in full, providing tailored care services so that elderly residents and people with severe disabilities can live healthy lives at home and in their own neighborhoods rather than in hospitals or institutions.
"I hope the heartfelt sincerity of residents who have quietly carried on caregiving for their families will reach the community as a warm sense of shared understanding through this contest," district mayor Jo Yu-jin said. "We will continue to build a tight-knit welfare support system so that family caregiving households do not have to shoulder the burden of care alone."
The Yeongdeungpo Integrated Care project links medical, welfare and health management services to deliver personalized care tailored to each resident's health condition and living environment.
The district draws up individual support plans through an integrated support council that brings together the public health center, the National Health Insurance Service and private welfare organizations. Through last month, the council had convened 13 times and connected residents with about 750 personalized care services. Key programs include a safe-discharge integrated care service, a home-visit exercise education program, a customized meal support service, a care package program, a fall-prevention home care service and a respite program for families of care workers.
To make the integrated care services more accessible to a wider range of residents, the district produced 1,500 copies of the "2026 Yeongdeungpo-gu Integrated Care Guide" and distributed them to the 18 neighborhood community centers, the public health center, the general social welfare center and private care organizations.
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