Newsmakers: The North Korean orphan who snuck into China and lived in the mountains until a missionary rescued him - East Idaho News
East Idaho Newsmakers

Newsmakers: The North Korean orphan who snuck into China and lived in the mountains until a missionary rescued him

  Published at  | Updated at

In this edition of East Idaho Newsmakers, Nate Eaton speaks with Joseph Kim. Kim is a North Korean refugee who was in eastern Idaho earlier this week as a guest of Ammon Mayor Sean Coletti.

Kim’s harrowing story of survival led him to write the book “Under the Same Sky.” When he was 12, his father died of starvation. His sister and mother left for China to find food, and his sister was sold to a Chinese man. He never saw his mother again.

Kim was homeless and escaped to China by himself at age 15. He lived on the streets and in the mountains for years before meeting a Christian missionary who connected him with Liberty in North Korea (LINK). Through the organization, Kim was able to seek asylum in the United States.

He currently works at the George W. Bush Institute in Dallas and joined Coletti during this conversation with Nate Eaton.

Watch the video above for the entire interview.

EAST IDAHO NEWSMAKERS ARCHIVES

NEWSMAKERS ENCORE: THE LOCAL DAD WHO HIT NATIONAL FAME AS THE ‘COWBOY NINJA’

WOOD FUNERAL HOME OWNER BRIAN WOOD

THESE 4 EASTERN IDAHOANS ARE NATIONAL FIDDLER CHAMPIONS

PRIDDAHO LEADERS TALK ABOUT HOW THEY WANT TO HELP EASTERN IDAHO

HOW ALEX BOYE WENT FROM BEING A HOMELESS TEENAGER TO A POPULAR ENTERTAINER

HOW COSTCO ENDED UP COMING TO IDAHO FALLS & THE CITY’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OUTLOOK

DR. DAVID ADLER, PRESIDENT OF THE ALTURAS INSTITUTE

IFPD CHIEF SHARES BEHIND-THE-SCENES DETAILS IN THE ANGIE DODGE MURDER CASE & TALKS ABOUT WHAT’S NEXT

IDAHO FALLS SUMMER ROAD PROJECTS, WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE WATER TOWER, GROWTH AND MORE

CONGRESSMAN MIKE SIMPSON ON IMMIGRATION, DRUG PRICES, SALMON IN IDAHO & WHY HE’S RUNNING AGAIN

MEET ERIC OLVERA, THE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR JUST ACCEPTED TO HARVARD ON A FULL-RIDE SCHOLARSHIP

POPULAR CHILDREN’S AUTHOR OBERT SKYE

SETH AARON HENDERSON – A TWO-TIME PROJECT RUNWAY WINNER & FIN FUN’S NEW LEAD DESIGNER

IFPD CHIEF DISCUSSES COLD CASES, THE NEED FOR A NEW FACILITY AND WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE DEPARTMENT

HOW THIS LOCAL WOMAN ENDED UP ON THE DOLLAR GOLD COIN

BRANDON WILLIAMS, THE LOCAL KNIFE MAKER WHO WON HISTORY CHANNEL’S ‘FORGED IN FIRE’

SUBMIT A CORRECTION