Seoul's Seocho-gu district announced Thursday that it had carried out its "Homeless Daily Life Reintegration Support Project."
At an event held Tuesday at the plaza outside Express Bus Terminal Station in Banpo-dong, the district worked alongside professional hairdressers from the Seocho-gu chapter of the Korean Barbers and Beauticians Association to provide homeless individuals with haircuts and grooming services, on-the-spot ID photo sessions, psychological counseling and other personalized welfare services. The district also distributed relief supplies — including ice water, dosirak and toiletries — to those who came to the site, and coordinated with the Banpo police substation to ensure safe event operations and on-site response.
Now in its sixth year, the project was designed to protect the health of homeless people and prevent safety incidents during the ongoing heat wave. Since signing an MOU with the Seoul Metropolitan Dasi Seogi Comprehensive Support Center and the Seocho-gu chapter of the Korean Barbers and Beauticians Association in 2024, Seocho-gu has held the event annually to support the stable reintegration of homeless residents into everyday life.
The district plans to run an outreach humanities lecture series in October. Now in its fourth year since launching in 2023, the series was created to help homeless individuals dealing with psychological withdrawal and social isolation. The district also plans to hold a community cleanup volunteer activity with homeless participants for the first time in the second half of this year, expanding opportunities for social participation as part of its broader efforts to support reintegration. In November last year, Seocho-gu held an outreach humanities lecture for about 20 homeless people near Express Bus Terminal.
"We will take careful steps to protect the health and safety of homeless people who are especially vulnerable to extreme heat, and to help them restore their dignity so they can return to everyday life," district mayor Jeon Seong-su said. "We will continue to expand integrated welfare services aimed at helping homeless residents rebuild their daily lives."
cook@heraldcorp.com
