Funeral service for esteemed leader Min Hi Rhee to be held on July 26

The funeral service for the late Min Hi Rhee, an esteemed leader of the Korean American community in the United States, will be held at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday, July 26, at Old North Church in North Hollywood (6300 Forest Lawn Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90068). The service will be officiated by Rev. Hong Ju Choi from Everyday Church.

Mr. Rhee passed away at 1:10 a.m. on June 24 at the age of 90. He graduated from Kyunggi High School and Dongguk University in Seoul, South Korea, before immigrating to the United States in 1956. He later obtained a degree in Public Administration from San Jose State University.

Throughout his life, Mr. Rhee made significant contributions to the Korean American community. He held various leadership positions, including the presidency of the Korean American Association in San Francisco and Los Angeles. He served as the president of the San Francisco Korean American Association in 1971, and subsequently held positions such as president of the San Francisco Korean Radio and TV Broadcasting, 9th president of the San Francisco Korean American Association (1974), president of the Los Angeles Korean American Association, and president of the Korea Sports Association in the USA.

In 1995, Mr. Rhee became the 16th president of the Federation of Korean Associations in the USA. In 2006, he founded the Korean-American Leadership Foundation and became its first chairman. Through this organization, he dedicated himself to serving the Korean American community and fostering the next generation of leaders, while also striving for unity and elevating the stature of Koreans in the United States.

For his remarkable contributions, Mr. Rhee has received numerous honors from the South Korean government, including the Camemillia Medal of the Order of Civil Merit of Korea, the Geosang Medal of the Order of Sports Merit of Korea, the Rose of Sharon Medal of the Order of Civil Merit of Korea, the Order of the Hero of the Republic of Korea, and the May 16th National Award.

In his autobiography titled “One Way,” published in 2020, he wrote, “The Korean American community is like my body, with my life’s tribulations written on it.”

Mr. Rhee’s father, Kyu Gap Rhee, was an independent movement leader, and his father-in-law, Gap Sung Lee, was a patriotic national leader and one of the 33 national representatives of the March 1 Movement.

He is survived by his two sons, Phillip Rhee and Simon Rhee, who are producers in the Hollywood movie industry.

For further inquiries, please contact: 323-317-2626.

BY EUNYOUNG LEE   [lee.eunyoung6@koreadaily.com]