Roughly 7200 miles separate Rome, Georgia and Jeonju City, South Korea, but
the distance is not measured in miles for Cheri Mathis and Yong Ki Kim.
Instead, they think in terms of years, specifically the almost 40 years that
separate the first time they corresponded and the first time they met.
In 1974 Mathis was a 14 year-old girl who placed an ad in an international
magazine looking for a pen pal from some place far away from the small rural
town of Petal, Mississippi where she lived.
"I was involved in a church group called Girls in Action and we were
encouraged to have pen pals so I placed an ad in the back of our G.A.
magazine." Mathis said. "I only got one reply!"
That reply came from the Kim who was fifteen at the time. Like Mathis, he
lived in a small rural town and was hoping to make an international friend.
"I visited a bookstore in our downtown area and saw a list of foreign
students looking for pen pals and she was on the list," said Kim. "I wrote
to her and we continued writing throughout high school."
Despite significant economic and cultural differences, the teenagers had
much in common, including a shared faith.
"We prayed for each other a lot over the years," Mathis said.
For Kim, the letters did more than just offer a glimpse at a foreign land.
They also provided lessons that would serve him later in life.
"My English was not very good and I struggled to even write a sentence," he
explained, "but she would correct my mistakes, helping me improve with each
letter."
After receiving pictures of Mathis' family, Kim found himself in a dilemma.
"We were very poor and couldn't afford a camera," he said. "I went into the
city and found a photographer who would come to our home and take one photo.
It was very expensive, but I wanted her to see my family."
Mathis was surprised to hear the story.
"I had no idea," she said. "We always took family photos in the states, it
wasn't a big deal at all. Hearing that story really shows how much we take
for granted."
Mathis and Kim lost touch with one another after both graduated from high
school and moved on to college and families of their own. It wasn't until
2009, over thirty years later, that technology brought them back together.
"I have an American friend who lives in South Korea," Kim said. "I told him
about Cheri and asked him to help me track her down so he got on Facebook in
my office and we found her."
"I logged onto Facebook and had a message from this person who was
describing a friend from Korea," Mathis continued. "He told me Yong Ki's
name and asked if I remembered him and I said 'Oh my gosh! Yes, I do
remember, I do remember' and it was just the neatest thing!"
Kim set up a Facebook profile for himself so he could reconnect with the
friend he thought he might never talk to again. Soon, the two were again
communicating regularly and the back-and-forth writings were delivered in a
much quicker fashion than thirty years prior.
"You know, the letters took so long to be delivered," Mathis said, "but with
Facebook the messages were instant. It was just so neat. And I still
correct his English!"
Kim and Mathis have spent the last three years communicating via Facebook
and making up for the thirty years that had passed but, while social media
made catching up much easier, the friends had yet to meet face-to-face.
There was still the issue of that 7200 miles. Neither could have guessed
that the fight against breast cancer in northwest Georgia would play a role
in giving them an opportunity to finally meet.
Kim is secretary of general affairs for Jesus Hospital in Jeonju City.
Jesus Hospital has formed a partnership with Floyd Medical Center, providing
an opportunity for the two staffs to learn from one another, particularly in
the prevention and treatment of breast cancer. Administrators at the
700-bed South Korean hospital are especially interested in The Breast Center
at Floyd's ability to diagnose breast cancer and begin a treatment plan for
patients within 24 hours.
As part of the learning process, Kim is making a 20-day visit to Rome to
tour Floyd Medical and spend time with its staff. Once Mathis knew he was
coming to Rome, only a five-hour drive from Petal, she put a plan into
action.
"Yong Ki had mentioned Dr. Russell," Mathis said, speaking of Floyd's Vice
President and Chief of Medical Affairs, Dee Russell, M.D. "I sent Dr.
Russell what I told him was probably the strangest text he had ever
received. I told him our story and that I had to come to Rome."
Russell worked with Aimee Griffin, Director of The Breast Center at Floyd,
to coordinate the face-to-face meeting, which took place over breakfast at
the hospital.
"I was so nervous I didn't sleep at all last night," Kim said.
Mathis said nerves were not a problem for her but she was still experiencing
a flood of emotions.
"I was just so excited to finally be able to meet him, I just couldn't
believe it," she said. "We had written so much about our lives over the
years that it's like we already knew each other, but I was so happy to be
able to finally meet him."
After breakfast Kim spent the day touring Rome with Mathis and her daughter
Scarlett, a sophomore at the University of Southern Mississippi. By the end
of the day Mathis had a plan for this international friendship to grow, even
beyond them.
"I told Yong Ki that Scarlett should start writing his son and helping him
with his English. We could pass this on to every generation of our
families!"
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