Starbucks awards scholarships to descendants of independence activists

Starbucks Korea announced Thursday that it had awarded a combined 100 million won ($74,400) in scholarships to 50 university students who are descendants of independence activists, ahead of Patriots and Veterans Day.

The company has run the scholarship program since 2015 to honor the sacrifices and dedication of independence activists and support their descendants' education. Over the past 12 years, 533 descendants have received scholarships, with cumulative support reaching approximately 1.1 billion won.

The "2026 Independence Activist Descendants Scholarship Ceremony" was held that day at the Starbucks support center. The company presented 50 university students — selected in partnership with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans and the Korea Council of Social Welfare — with scholarships of 2 million won each.

The scholarships were funded through a social contribution fund built with customers at the Dongnimmun Station store, the sixth location in Starbucks' profit-sharing community store program. Starbucks signed an MOU with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans and the Korea Council of Social Welfare in 2023 to convert the store into a community store. The store sets aside 300 won per item sold to fund scholarships for independence activist descendants and other support for veterans' families.

"We will continue activities that provide meaningful, practical help to veterans' families, including scholarships and employment support," said Kim Ji-young, head of Starbucks Korea's ESG team.