Father Augustine Woo Chang-won, secretary general of Babo Nanum, hands the Babo Nanum Store placard to Mark Park Jeong-hoon, owner the Stitch Coffee Roaster on Sept 14. (Photo by The Catholic Times of Korea)
A hundred businesses have joined the Babo Nanum Store campaign run by the Seoul Archdiocese to raise funds for social welfare facilities.
Babo Nanum announced that its 100th business has registered as part of the campaign that began in February which also seeks to promote the spirit of sharing as exemplified by the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, South Korea's first cardinal who passed away in 2009.
Small business owners can become a Babo Nanum Store by donating at least US$28 a month or US$880 a year to the foundation.
"Despite a sluggish economy, lots of small business owners are joining the campaign to help their needy neighbors," said Father Augustine Woo Chang-won, secretary general of Babo Nanum.
Mark Park Jeong-hoon, owner of a coffee bar and the 100th Babo Nanum Store, said he is glad to be part of an effort to help the less fortunate. "I just wanted to share the spirit of the late cardinal and this campaign has made this possible," said Park.
John Bosco Oh Se-ho, who manages a cleaning service, said he joined the campaign for two reasons.
"I became interested in the welfare of children and youth when my wife and I had a child two years ago and so I want to help," he said. "I also want to participate because I want to help elderly people. Once I had to clean a house where a senior had died alone. Registering to become a Babo Nanum Store was an expression of my concern for them."