Hong Ra-hee, Honorary Director of the Leeum Museum of Art, was awarded the National Order of Dongbaek on the 26th in recognition of her long-standing contributions to various sectors of our society through donations and other efforts.
Following the Gold Cross of Humanity from the Red Cross in 2024, Hong received the National Order, being recognized for her merit in practicing sharing across culture, healthcare, and welfare for over 40 years. The National Order, awarded by the government, is divided into five grades: the highest grade Mugunghwa Order, second grade Morang Order, third grade Dongbaek Order, fourth grade Mokryeon Order, and fifth grade Seokryu Order.
Inside and outside the business community, Hong is evaluated as having led the practice of 'noblesse oblige' by elevating the social safety net and raising the paradigm of domestic donation culture to a higher level.
In particular, Hong, together with her eldest son Lee Jae-yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, among others, donated over 23,000 artworks from the collection of the late Lee Kun-hee, former Chairman of Samsung, including "Inwang Mountain in Autumn Colors," to the state under a joint family name in 2021. The National Museum of Korea and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art held domestic touring exhibitions of the 'Lee Kun-hee Collection (KH Collection),' which included a large number of national treasure-level artworks, attracting 3.5 million visitors, the largest scale among art exhibition events in our country's history. Following this, since November last year, special overseas touring exhibitions have been held at the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art in Washington D.C., USA, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the British Museum.
In this process, Hong attended gala receptions for the touring exhibitions hosted by Samsung at the Smithsonian and the British Museum, meeting Lee Jae-yong, Chairman, and other family members as well as key local figures, contributing to promoting the dignity of our country's culture.
Of the legacy of the late Lee Kun-hee, 1 trillion won was also returned to society through medical donations. Of this amount, 300 billion won was donated for children with cancer and rare diseases, laying the foundation for the launch of the 'Lee Kun-hee Pediatric Cancer and Rare Disease Support Project Team,' where medical staff and researchers from major hospitals nationwide gathered. 700 billion won was invested in establishing an infectious disease response system, including the construction of the National Infectious Disease Hospital and the development of research and treatment infrastructure.
Hong has consistently practiced personal donations in her daily life as well. In the case of cash donations to the Korean Red Cross, she became the third founding member of the 'Red Cross Honors Club,' a group of high-value donors with cumulative donations exceeding 100 million won based on 2016 Red Cross donation standards, and was inducted into the Red Cross Honors 1 Billion Club in 2025.
In addition, she has continuously made donations for children, adolescents, and vulnerable groups in local communities, including 1 billion won to the Youth Happiness Foundation and 355 million won to the Yongsan Welfare Foundation. In 2016, it was later revealed that she had donated 4 billion won to the Korea Juvenile Protection Association under the Ministry of Justice together with then Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, sparking attention. It is reported that the donations made by the mother and son were used to support the independence of female adolescents in difficult circumstances.
A business community official stated, "Personal donations and good deeds by Hong and Lee (Chairman) are rarely intentionally publicized or announced," adding, "Only some details are later revealed by those who received help; even people around them do not know much about it."
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