He said goodbye to his parents and his younger brother not knowing what to expect. Fresh off his first year at Pepperdine Kangkeun “KK” Rhee exhibited an assortment of emotions ranging from uncertainty to anxiety to confidence.
The date was June 52006 a sunny Monday in Rhee’s hometown of Uijeongbu South Korea. One month earlier he had left Pepperdine knowing for the next two years he would have to put his college education— as well as the relationships he had developed and the life he had grown accustomed to— on hold.
All males born in South Korea are constitutionally required to serve in the military for a period of two years. So after bidding farewell to his family Rhee began the next chapter of his life in a world of strict regimens chains of command and self-discovery.
During high school Rhee decided he would attend college in the United States After looking into a variety of universities including large state schools Rhee chose Pepperdine because he was drawn to its strong feeling of community.
“Pepperdine does a good job of [connecting] people and making them feel like they’re home Rhee said. It was … the intimacy level that made me want to come here.”
When Rhee arrived in August 2005 he started attending church for the first time since middle school and began to rediscover his Christian faith which he said “got lost along the way” during his high school years.
Rhee didn’t fully understand Christianity at the time but he was attracted to the overarching message of the Bible and enjoyed listening to then-Campus Minister Ryan Bien’s Wednesday night sermons.
“I still didn’t really grasp a lot about Christian values but … to me [they] sounded like how a person should carry out life on a daily basis Rhee said.
As the end of freshman year approached, Rhee knew a difficult junction lay ahead. While his friends were figuring out their class schedules for the fall or finalizing their plans to study abroad, Rhee was getting ready to serve for two years in the Korean military. He didn’t want to leave his friends and his education behind, but he knew he had a duty to his country and that he had to move on and get it done.”
He returned to South Korea in April 2006. One month later after saying goodbye to his parents and his younger brother Christopher Rhee began his two-year service with the military. He spent three days in pre-recruitment training before heading to boot camp where the strenuous reality of military life quickly set in.
“I thought things would start to look better but boot camp was not always the easiest thing Rhee said. You don’t know what’s going to happen. You’re so used to your life outside the military you don’t understand military values at first … I just did what everyone else did.”
On July 14 Rhee was sent to an army base just south of the Military Demarcation Line — the border that separates North and South Korea — where he would spend the remainder of his service. Assigned to the Headquarters Battery Rhee was responsible for filling out documents and logging personnel information to ensure the combat batteries had the munitions they needed.
The Sunday after his arrival Rhee began attending Sandol a church associated with his base. Although he was “less dedicated” to his faith than he had been at Pepperdine Rhee found comfort in hearing a weekly message from the church’s pastor Byung-heon Cho.
Cho recognized Rhee’s consistent presence at Sandol and in March 2007 asked the young soldier if he would be interested in serving as a spiritual life advisor for the base.
Despite some reservations Rhee accepted Cho’s invitation. On top of his regular duties at the Headquarters Battery Rhee made bulletins encouraged others to attend church and helped facilitate growth in the spiritual lives of his fellow soldiers.
Looking back at his experience as an SLA Rhee is unsure if he should have taken on the added responsibility at the time.
“I decided to do it because … I thought it would be a really great way to serve people. But it was really hard Rhee said. You have to remember that you’re still a soldier. You have to do all your duties. So that made it stressful conflicting and difficult.”
When his two-year service ended on May 272008 Rhee had the choice to remain in the military or to restart his life as a college student. He opted for the latter returning to Pepperdine for his sophomore year in August.
In November Rhee attended a University Ministries (U.M.) service at Malibu Presbyterian Church that sparked new life into his Christian faith. Ross McMeekin who was the U.M. director at the time delivered a message about the renewing power of God and how “everything that is dry will become fresh again.”
“That really struck me Rhee said. That was really a good message. It opened my eyes … It gave me a new value of how I should serve my life as a college student.”
This year as a junior Rhee is a co-coordinator for the Pepperdine chapter of World Vision ACT:S a student activist organization committed to raising awareness for human rights issues and soliciting the help of government leaders to bring an end to poverty suffering and injustice.
The world issue closest to Rhee’s heart is the divided state of the Korean peninsula. Although the Korean War officially ended in 1953 Rhee affirmed the conflict is far from over. Until there is political and ideological unity between North and South Korea and the peninsula ceases being divided the war will continue.
“If North Korea would dismantle their nuclear development peace in East Asia will come faster Rhee said. I really believe that. A lot of people may not believe it but we must pray for it and we must work hard for it. You don’t want it to stay a divided country anymore … Something needs to be done right now.”
Although Malibu is close to 6000 miles removed from Uijeongbu Rhee said his heart and soul will always be with the country that raised him and in return he gave up two years of his life to serve. At 23 years old he’s not entirely sure what waits for him in the future. But he is confident about one thing— when he leaves Pepperdine he’ll have no regrets.
“It’s been an interesting 23 years Rhee said. At the end when I leave here I wouldn’t regret my experience at all. I wouldn’t regret anything. I really enjoyed it. And I hope to enjoy it more from now on too.”