Partnership links LifeHope's 17 regional chapters and 170-plus church network with SOS Wigo program

LifeHope head Cho Seong-don (left) and Eland Welfare Foundation CEO Jung Young-il pose for a photo at the signing ceremony for the crisis family support project. [Eland Welfare Foundation]
LifeHope head Cho Seong-don (left) and Eland Welfare Foundation CEO Jung Young-il pose for a photo at the signing ceremony for the crisis family support project. [Eland Welfare Foundation]

The Eland Welfare Foundation signed an MOU with LifeHope Christian Suicide Prevention Center at the organization's office in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday. Eland Welfare Foundation CEO Jung Young-il and LifeHope head Cho Seong-don attended the signing ceremony.

The agreement aims to identify families facing compounding hardships — including financial difficulties — among high-risk suicide groups and suicide-bereaved families, and to connect them with emergency aid and sustained care. At its core, the MOU links LifeHope's network of 17 regional chapters and more than 170 churches nationwide with the Eland Welfare Foundation's crisis family support program, SOS Wigo.

SOS Wigo identifies and supports families in crisis who fall outside the reach of the social welfare system. The two organizations plan to operate a collaborative framework spanning identification, emergency support and ongoing care.

LifeHope's regional chapters will identify families in need and submit support applications through SOS Wigo. The Eland Welfare Foundation will review each case under its existing crisis family support framework and provide emergency assistance. After that initial aid, each LifeHope chapter will work alongside local church communities to provide continued care to those families.

"Through community partnerships, we will proactively reach families who have fallen through the cracks of the welfare system and ensure that SOS Wigo's emergency support leads to a genuine recovery of daily life," Jung said.


andy@heraldcorp.com