Yuk Young-soo

Yuk Young-soo (29 November 1925 – 15 August 1974) was the wife of the 3rd South Korean president Park Chung Hee and the mother of the 11th South Korean president Park Geun-hye.

Yuk was born in Okcheon County, North Chungcheong Province, Korea in 1925, the second of three daughters of a prosperous self-made landlord.

She graduated from Baehwa High School for Girls (presently known as Paihwa Girls' High School).

In August 1950 she met Park Chung Hee through a relative who was serving under Park.

On 12 December 1950 she married Park Chung Hee.

While her mother supported her choice of husband, Yuk's father was against the match, so she married without his blessing.

When Park Chung Hee was in the mission as the chairman of the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction, Yuk Young-soo's main interest was handling civil complaints.

Jeong Jae-hoon, a disciple and secretary of the First Lady's Office for six years, recalled:

"'We have conversations with as many people as possible to collect public opinion on the streets, and dozens of complaints a day are left with instructions. I made them run.'"

Yuk Young-soo always made a simple impression on people regarding Hanbok and elegance, and was a sincere wife to her husband at home.

She also took great interest in children and health, and often visited orphanages and nurseries several times to develop policies for children's health.

During her husband's tenure, she mainly took care of receiving guests and dealing with complaints, although she wanted to do her part as "a revolutionary's wife".

She was also involved with the Red Cross and with children with autism.

She also did not hesitate to try to influence her husband, especially in 1963, when, to resolve tensions with the American ambassador Samuel D. Berger, she invited him to the Blue House.

Park Chung Hee then joked about it, going so far as to consider her "the first opposition party".

In 1969, she created a private foundation with the aim of improving the well-being of South Korean children.

In 1970, the construction of Children's Grand Park started and opened the following year.

She was also close to the people, and visited patients suffering from leprosy.

She helped to start several self-support projects, and visited the families of South Korean soldiers deployed to Vietnam, to comfort and console them.

In 1973, she undertook projects which saw the development of vocational training institutes for poor and disadvantaged youth.

Because of the efforts of Yuk Young-soo, a vigorous social services are professional because the social welfare-oriented vocational training that have had to know glim of poverty.

She was killed in 1974 during an attempted assassination of her husband.

In 1974, a mother was invited to the Blue House revealed that her child was suffering from facial paralysis.

Yuk Young-soo found the best acupuncture center and hospitalized him.

At 10:23 a.m., 15 August 1974, South Korean Independence Day, Yuk was shot and killed by Mun Se-gwang, a Zainichi Korean and North Korean sympathizer, during an attempt by Mun to assassinate President Park Chung Hee.

The assassination occurred at the Seoul National Theater of Korea during an Independence Day ceremony.

Mun intended to shoot Park in the theater lobby.

However, his view was obstructed, and he was forced to enter and be seated near the back of the theater.

During Park's address, he attempted to get closer to the President but inadvertently fired his Smith & Wesson Model 36 revolver prematurely, injuring himself.

Having alerted security, he then ran down the theater aisle firing wildly.

His second bullet hit the left side of the podium from which Park was delivering his speech.

The third bullet was a misfire.

His fourth bullet struck Yuk Young-soo in the head, seriously wounding her.

His last bullet went through a flag decorating the rear of the stage.

A bullet fired by Park Jong-gyu, a member of the President's security detail, in response to Mun's attack, ricocheted off a wall and killed a high school student, Jang Bong-hwa.

Immediately following the capture of Mun, Park resumed his scheduled speech despite his wife being wounded and carried from the stage.

Following its completion he picked up his wife's handbag and shoes and left.

Yuk was rushed to the Seoul National University Hospital in Wonnam-dong, central Seoul.

Dr. Shim Bo-seong, who was chief of the hospital's neurosurgery department, began operating on Yuk at 11 a.m., which lasted for over five hours.

The bullet damaged the largest vein on the right side of her brain and remained lodged within the brain.