Newsmakers Encore: The orphan who snuck into China and lived in the mountains until a missionary rescued him
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In this encore edition of East Idaho Newsmakers, Nate Eaton speaks with Joseph Kim. Kim is a North Korean refugee who was in eastern Idaho last July as a guest of Ammon Mayor Sean Coletti.
Kim’s harrowing story of survival led him to write the book “Under the Same Sky.” When he was 12, his father died of starvation. His sister and mother left for China to find food, and his sister was sold to a Chinese man. He never saw his mother again.
Kim was homeless and escaped to China by himself at age 15. He lived on the streets and in the mountains for years before meeting a Christian missionary who connected him with Liberty in North Korea (LINK). Through the organization, Kim was able to seek asylum in the United States.
He currently works at the George W. Bush Institute in Dallas and joined Coletti during this conversation with Nate Eaton.
Watch the video above for the entire interview.