A 16-year-old Mongolian boy who came to Korea a decade ago with his family and cherished the country as his own has passed away, giving new life to five people through organ donation after brain death.
According to the Korea Organ Donation Agency on the 16th, Lee Tae-o (Otgon Sanjmyatav), a Mongolian national, donated his heart, lungs, liver, and both kidneys at Korea University Guro Hospital on the 11th of last month, saving five lives before he passed away.
Tae-o was involved in a traffic accident on the 3rd of last month. He was taken to the hospital, underwent emergency surgery, and received continued treatment, but never regained consciousness and fell into a state of brain death.
His family agreed to the organ donation in consideration of Tae-o's character, as he had always loved helping and giving to others. His sister Yoon-a explained the reason for their consent, saying, "I felt that if Tae-o were alive, he would have said, 'Why didn't you let me help more people at that time.'"
According to the bereaved family, Tae-o was born in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in January 2010, and came to Korea 10 years ago when he was six years old. He spent his kindergarten, elementary, and middle school years all in Korea, and having entered high school this year as a first-year student, Tae-o was more familiar with Korean language and culture than with Mongolian. He regarded Korea as his hometown to the extent that he cheered for Korea when watching soccer matches and naturally sang the national anthem. With a bright and lively personality, he enjoyed various sports including basketball, soccer, and judo. His attentiveness and consideration for those around him made him popular among his friends, and he was elected class president after entering high school. He was nurturing a dream of building his own business in Korea in the future. About 100 friends and teachers came to Tae-o's funeral, shedding tears as they bid farewell to the deceased on his final journey.
His mother, Lee Sun-i, offered her final words, saying, "Thank you for being born as my beloved son. I did not only give love to Tae-o, but I was happy to have received so much love through him. Just as there is a saying in Mongolia that 'a soul that has departed to the sky returns to the arms of the family to be reborn,' I hope he will surely come back to our family someday."
