4494(III)_Listening to the young people - important mission for the youth in Korea

Youth Counselling & Welfare center in Chuncheon: 

1388 channel open 24 hrs

By Bro. Mark Choi, SDB

Chuncheon, Korea, 13 September 2017 -- Within the fast changing and ageing society of South Korea one of the youth main needs is without doubt a counselling. Children and teenagers find very few people who listen to them both in their families as well in the highly competitive school education system. Also the increasing youth violence and suicide attempt rate in South Korea does foster need of more systematic and dedicated counselling center. Salesian Family members (especially SDB, FMA sisters and Salesian Cooperators) invested in past 15 year a lot of energies in this field.

As many other SDB works in South Korea, the Salesians work together with and within the government structures. Kangwon Province Counselling & Welfare Centre for the Youth (1996): is now reaching out to 46.000 youth destinataries of different ways of counselling, an umbrella and supervisory body for 10 county and city Centres in the Gangwon province (1.5 million of population), based on CYS-Net (Community Youth Safety Net) approach of the government, with a 1388 Youth Counselling Channel phone service: 24/24hrs. Mission partners - 35 Staff – full and part timers. Chuncheon City Counselling & Welfare Centre for the Youth (2017): was entrusted to the SDB on the Chuncheon diocesan property (twin building with the Multicultural pastoral centre) with 2 SDB and 5 staff.

Gangwon Province Youth Counselling & Welfare Center can be visited (http://www.gycc.kr).

Chuncheon Counselling & Welfare Center for Youth (www.cycc.1388.org).

Chuncheon community was opened in 1996, when started with a Kangwon province Youth Center (2012 end of the contract) and now is entrusted with 3 main works of Chuncheon Counselling & Welfare Center for Youth, Kangwong Province Counselling & Welfare Center for Youth and ‘Group home’ (Bogum Jari). At present there are 3 Salesian Priest and one Salesian Brother.

We are happy to share this mission with many lay mission partners and try our best to reach out and help as many young people in this important mission!

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