unities Letter from Edie Moon

Dear SFS,

I first met you when I was a kindergarten student. Driving to Yeonhui Dong from Cheong Dong seemed like a long journey to the country. You were a school on a hill surrounded by rice paddies and very few buildings propped up on what used to be a grave site near a mountain called Ansan by most and called Saddleback by some.

The irony was my English was not good enough for your standards as I had spent the past two years in the Korean alleyways around the kimchi pots of my neighbors who only spoke Korean. I was sent back home to practice English. I remember those early years of education growing up with other missionary kids many of whom graduated with me. We had drop drills and practices for evacuating to Gimpo Airport if there was ever an attack from North Korea. My classmates and I were family. We called each other’s parents “aunt” and “uncle” and still do to this day.

I remember loving high school, playing sports, performing in the school plays, participating as a leader in student government, going to youth group, singing in a rock band and yes, having classes on tatami mats which replaced our desks on the SFS floor for a short time. Oh and yes, I remember hanging out with boys. I was oblivious to what was happening in the streets of Seoul and around Korea as this country fought for democracy. I lived under a military governed regime where we had curfews every night and listened to patriotic music being played from city hall every morning. I was here for the assassinations of presidents and the toppling of governments. SFS, you pressed on.

When I left at 18, I did not expect to return to Korea but I was called back by Mr. Underwood and yes, I believe by God, to come and teach in the high school as a 22 year old. The trees had grown and the buildings added to by then. In 1981, Korea was beginning to thrive after years of grappling with post war poverty and destruction. There was another new government and right before I returned still many had died for democracy in Gwangju. Protests were a way of life as people grappled with issues of independence and freedom of thought and life. I learned how to teach and direct at SFS as this was modeled by my colleagues who were truly inspired teachers. I watched and learned from them as they came and went from year to year. I met my husband, Jack Moon then, (another inspired teacher), and we had two beautiful girls a few years later, Melissa and Kayla. SFS then became their home and their community. The “campus kids” were all of our children in a way as they flitted back and forth between apartments and around the nooks and crannies of the campus.

After repatriating to the US for 3 years in the early 2000s, we were called back to SFS by Dr. Lyso, the headmaster. I was asked to develop a schoolwide theatre program and Jack was to oversee all campus extracurricular activities. We returned to an SFS of stunning theaters, a swimming pool, a new middle school, new teacher housing, a new chapel and cafeteria. The student body was transformed as well. Numbers had grown and diversity had come in the most beautiful way!

For the past 17 years, we have watched SFS burgeon alongside

Korea. Spectacularly, Korea hosted the Olympics and World Cup football. Most recently, it has burst onto the worldwide stage with award winning movies, books written by Korean authors and translated into English and the ever growing popularity of K Dramas and K Pop music. Korean fashion and makeup have taken the online world by storm. Technology, architecture, art, literature, design have catapulted Korea onto the world stage. SFS, you have kept up! The development of schoolwide IB programs, fine arts programs, an ever expanding sports program, design classes, robotics and so much more. You have excelled as one of the premier international schools in the Asia-Pacific region.

Dear SFS. Thank you.

For being home to us over all these years.

For the gracious service and support of the best GA staff that any school could ask for.

For the safety and support of our caring guards.

For the delicious food, Korean and Western, cooked by the cafeterias.

For teachers, counselors, administrators and students who have taught me how to teach.

For spiritual life coordinators and mentors who have shown me how to disciple with empathy and acceptance.

For leadership who have afforded me the space to create both in theatre and in the classroom.

For the students who have always challenged me, always surprised me, and always inspired me.

For the little children on the SFS campus who have shown love and more love every single day.

For the nurses who worked tirelessly to keep us healthy during the pandemic.

For the alums who have returned to teach here because of their love for the school.

For the parents who have given above - beyond- and built the school programs through their own efforts. Thank you to so many who have become my friends.

SFS, Thank you for surviving 111 years through wars, destruction, protests, revolutions, financial crises and gains, low student enrollment times, a myriad of curriculum approaches, a vast array of faculty groups and student groups. We know at the core, it wasn’t just your money or buildings or even your vision. It was all of that, of course, but mostly it was being Centered in Christ, built on Love, and a dedication to the acceptance of All. In spite of mistakes we made along the way, we have tried to honor the mission of our school and encourage others to embrace it.

Goodbye SFS.

Once a Crusader, Always a Crusader. We take you with us in our hearts.

Edie Moon

Class of 77

Teacher and Director from 1983-2023. (with the exception of sabbatical years). Student from 1965 to 1977 (with the exception of furlough years).