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Young Korean American volunteers keep San Pedro’s Korean Bell of Friendship pristine

March 23, 2015
Student volunteers help clean the Korean Bell of Friendship in San Pedro, Calif., Saturday. (Kim Hyung-jae/Korea Times)

Student volunteers help clean the Korean Bell of Friendship in San Pedro, Calif., Saturday. (Kim Hyung-jae/Korea Times)

San Pedro’s Korean Bell of Friendship, a symbol of U.S.-South Korean relations, is being kept pristine thanks to a group of young Korean American volunteers.

A group of about 30 students from Los Angeles and La Crescenta, members of a volunteer organization overseen by the bell’s preservation committee, came out Saturday morning bearing trash bags and cleaning supplies.

Volunteers have been working for two years to clean up the bell and the park around it.

One of them, ninth-grade student Jason Oh, said he learned of the bell’s existence for the first time Saturday. He said he plans to bring his parents to see the bell.

Another ninth grader, Chloe Kim, said she wants to come back to help clean the bell.

The bronze bell was gifted to the U.S. on its bicentennial in 1978 by South Korea and is a replica of the famous Korean Emille Bell.

Preservation commmittee President Park Sang-joon said they are taking any volunteers interested in lending a hand. Young Korean Americans and local community members are welcome to join, he said.

For more information, call 213-247-5607.