Father Dr. Lee Tae Seok
“Nothing is impossible to a willing mind.”
South Sudan endured a war that lasted over twenty years, with a death toll of approximately 2 million. After its independence from Sudan in 2011, South Sudan continued to experience bloodshed between its tribes that led to an additional 400,000 casualties. Due to the prolonged chaos and a destitute healthcare system, over 60% of the population - or 7 million people - suffer from malnutrition and lack access to basic medical treatment. As warring factions ran out of able bodied men to fight for them, they turned to children as young as ten years old and forced them to enlist as child soldiers.
In 2001, during the midst of all the bloody conflict, there was a South Korean doctor and priest who left everything behind and willingly went to a village called Tonj in this war-torn country. His name was Lee Tae Seok, and the people of Tonj lovingly refer to him as Father John Lee. After graduating from the medical school of Inje University, Lee Tae Seok decided to become a priest and pursue his true passion of helping children in poverty and patients without access to healthcare.
From 2001 to when he passed away of cancer at just 48 years old in 2010, Lee Tae Seok lived together with and dedicated his entire life to the people of Tonj, South Sudan: building a school for the children and providing free healthcare to nearby villagers suffering from conditions like Hansen's disease (leprosy), many of whom had never been cared for by a doctor. He rescued former child soldiers and personally taught them at his school. He sought to channel the deep hurt of these former child soldiers into music by forming South Sudan’s first brass band with them.
But above all, the most impactful thing Lee Tae Seok did for the people of South Sudan was to give them hope. He helped the children believe they could access a better future through education and gave the opportunity to pursue art by creating the country's first student brass band. The love he left behind is still flourishing today not just in Tonj, but all over the world.
