As a child in South Korea, Woo Ram Kim was athletic, academic even a child actor in soap operas and educational shows.His father is trying to get a job at his church after he graduates from seminary, which would allow him to get a work visa and keep Woo Ram under their guardianship. But he's still be in legal limbo, unable to get the full services he needs. For now, his parents have written a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and are praying the government hears their request for help.
He was 13-years-old when he had his first seizure. Several opinions later, his family got the diagnosis -- adrenoleukodystrophy, or ALD. The disease would cause more seizures and eventually put a smiling, active little boy into a near-comatose state.
Woo Ram is now 24. You may see a few reflexes from him, but he can't see, hear or eat.
Those who work with the Kims say they spend every waking moment caring for their only son, so much that Woo Ram has lived beyond doctors' expectations.
"Their love for their son has been just amazing and outstanding," said social worker Heather Sessions.
But the young man's survival is actually part of their problem. He's now legally an adult, no longer valid to be in the United States under his father's seminary visa. But, he's far too sick to go back to Korea.
8.16.2010
korean man in coma caught in immigration limbo
This is a really sad story out of Seattle about Woo Ram Kim, who is suffering from a deadly chronic disease leaving him nearly comatose and requiring constant care. The kicker: he's stuck in a gray area regarding his status in the United States. He's too sick to go home, but at 24, too old to fall under his parents' visa: Korean man in coma caught in immigration limbo.
angry archive
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