"A Spring of Hope for the Wounds of War"... Bom Foundation Chairperson Son Haeun Expands Korea-Vietnam Solidarity to Save Lives

Bom Foundation Pursues Cooperation to Expand Medical, Rehabilitation and Welfare Support for Vietnamese Agent Orange Victims
Following Opening of VAVA Korea Office and Visit to Local Welfare Center, Foundation Seeks to Expand Medical Cooperation in 2027
Chairperson Son Haeun: "Respecting Life and Putting Generosity into Practice"

The Bom Foundation, an incorporated nonprofit, is expanding medical, rehabilitation and welfare support for Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange and dioxin exposure and their families, while working to build a sustainable humanitarian cooperation framework between South Korea and Vietnam.

Son Haeun, chairwoman of the Bom Foundation (sixth from right), poses for a commemorative photo with Vietnamese officials after visiting a social welfare center for Agent Orange and dioxin victims in Hoa Lac, Hanoi, Vietnam, with a Korean delegation on the 4th. She met with victims and care staff and discussed ways to support the local community. [Photo by Bom Foundation]

Son Haeun, who leads the Bom Foundation, is advancing support programs for Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange exposure, guided by respect for life and love for one’s neighbors.

In particular, she is focused on identifying the medical and welfare needs of local victims and establishing a basis for cooperation between medical institutions and private organizations in the two countries.

In a recent interview, Chairperson Son said, "The war ended in history, but for those living with the suffering it caused, the pain has not yet ended," adding, "We will continue working together so that victims and their families can access practical treatment and rehabilitation, care, and opportunities for independence."

Chairperson Son currently heads the Bom Foundation and the Korea AI Blockchain Science and Technology Association. She is also involved in the management and business operations of related companies, including Bio Bom, Woori Bom, 3Bom and M2M Bom.

She applies her experience in research and development and corporate management in the bio and healthcare sectors to her social contribution work. She has focused on research and development involving natural-product-based materials, health promotion and metabolic diseases, and believes that advances in science and technology should contribute to improving human health and quality of life.

"A company's financial performance is important, but it has greater meaning when its achievements bring hope to neighbors in need and create social value," Chairperson Son emphasized. "Science and technology, corporate management and humanitarian giving should all come together in a shared effort to save lives."

The Bom Foundation's founding philosophy is "My Spring, Your Spring, Our Spring." It expresses the idea that love and generosity, beginning with individual recovery, should spread to neighbors and the wider community.

Chairperson Son explained that this philosophy is rooted in the religious values of "love of God and love of neighbor."

"Spring is not simply a season; it is a symbol of recovery and hope, showing that people can rise again even amid pain and despair," she said. "The Bom Foundation's goal is to carry My Spring, Your Spring and Our Spring forward into the Spring of Vietnam and the Spring of the world."

Building on this vision, the Bom Foundation is expanding its cooperation with the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA).

On October 15, 2026, an opening ceremony for the VAVA Korea office and a Korea-Vietnam exchange event were held in Sejong City. Chairperson Son hopes that establishing a cooperation hub in South Korea will enable the two countries to provide support for victims and promote people-to-people exchanges in a more systematic manner.

Then, on November 4, 2026, she visited the Social Welfare Center for Agent Orange and Dioxin Victims in Hoa Lac, Hanoi, Vietnam, with a South Korean delegation. They met with victims and care providers and discussed ways to provide support locally.

Reflecting on the visit, Chairperson Son said, "We visit the site according to our schedule and then return, but the victims, their families and care providers continue their lives there every day. I felt a responsibility to keep assessing the support needed on the ground, rather than letting this be a one-time visit."

She emphasized that support for victims of Agent Orange exposure should encompass not only medical treatment and rehabilitation, but also stable living conditions for families, long-term care, and expanded opportunities for social participation through education and vocational training.

In particular, the foundation's policy is to put the views and needs of victims and their families at the center of its programs, rather than treating them simply as recipients of support.

"An individual's illness or disability can affect not only that person but the lives of their entire family," Chairperson Son explained. "We need to listen carefully to local medical professionals, welfare experts and victims' families, and provide support in the areas where it is genuinely needed."

Beginning in 2027, the foundation plans to develop concrete opportunities for cooperation between medical institutions in South Korea and Vietnam.

Areas under consideration include medical staff education and training, rehabilitation, chronic disease management and professional care. The plan is to share the expertise and experience of medical institutions in both countries and gradually pursue cooperative programs suited to local healthcare conditions.

Chairperson Son said she had also discussed potential medical cooperation with Ajou University Medical Center in South Korea. However, specific programs and how they would be carried out still need to be discussed with the relevant institutions.

"What matters is not the scale of a program, but how much practical help it provides to victims," she said. "We will start with programs that can be implemented, assess their results and then expand the scope of our cooperation."

Alongside work in medical care and welfare, the Bom Foundation is also considering expanding people-to-people cooperation through cultural and artistic exchanges and the use of digital technology.

The digital platform Bom Talk (BOM TALK), being developed by M2M Bom, aims to become a global super app connecting a range of everyday services through a messenger with automatic translation between Korean and Vietnamese.

The plan is to expand its services into areas such as shopping, payments and welfare, and develop it into a platform that supports communication and international exchanges between the people of the two countries.

Chairperson Son said the foundation is also considering using Bom Talk to share the stories of Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange exposure and their families with South Korean society, and to find ways for people in both countries to take part in humanitarian support and giving.

She is also considering ways to introduce Bom Talk's vision and services in connection with an international hotel art fair being prepared for December 2026 in Hanoi, Vietnam, combining cultural and artistic exchange with digital communication.

These projects are currently in the planning or review stage, and their specific operating models and scope of cooperation will be determined through discussions in the future.

Chairperson Son identified trust, respect and continuity as the core principles of international cooperation.

"Helping neighbors in need cannot be accomplished with a single donation or event," she said. "Keeping even small promises and maintaining relationships over time are the basic principles of the international cooperation the Bom Foundation seeks to pursue."

She added, "Victims of Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam are not simply people in need of help; they are precious neighbors who, like us, possess inherent dignity. I hope South Korea and Vietnam can move beyond the painful history of the past and become partners in cooperation, saving lives and building the future together."

The Bom Foundation plans to continue discussions with VAVA and local organizations to identify feasible cooperative programs in education, cultural and artistic exchange, and digital exchange, as well as medical care, rehabilitation and welfare support.

Moving beyond one-time assistance toward sustainable cooperation Support for Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange exposure must go beyond the provision of goods and be linked to long-term systems for medical care, rehabilitation and support, making continuity essential.

The success of the Bom Foundation's humanitarian cooperation between South Korea and Vietnam will likely depend on designing programs based on local needs, involving specialized institutions and securing stable support systems. Whether the plan for medical cooperation in 2027 can lead to concrete programs will be an important point to watch.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.