Author Ned Forney and retired Admiral J. Robert Lunney discussed the Heungnam Evacuation and Lunney’s “Ship of Miracles” in this special holiday event commemorating the United Nation’s first humanitarian evacuation. Forney spoke to his major Seoul daily release profiling six descendants of those saved, including South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Lunney, who welcomed President Moon to Virginia during his first US visit as President, shares reflections on those harrowing days, acts of heroism, and the extraordinary flight to freedom.
A holiday reception follows, marking the December 1950 evacuation for members and guests, to include visitors from the United Nations nearby. The event also marks the 60th anniversary of the first Korea Society board meeting on December 12, 1957. Come celebrate the holidays and be touched by tales of sacrifice and the triumph of the human spirit and Korea-US friendship.
Thursday, December 14, 2017 | 4 PM
Heungnam Remembered
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About the Speakers
Ned Forney is a writer living in Seoul, South Korea. He is a former career educator and US Marine Corps veteran who has spent the past 8 years overseas, living in Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, China, and most recently, South Korea. He is currently working on a non-fiction book about the Chosin Reservoir Campaign and Heungnam Evacuation. Ned frequently writes articles and gives lectures on the Korean War and Korean-American friendship. He is a graduate of The Citadel and is the grandson of the late BGen. Edward H. Forney, USMC, the control officer at Heungnam in December 1950. Ned’s articles and blog posts can be found at nedforney.com .
J. Robert Lunney enlisted in the United States Navy at 17 during the closing days of World War ll and served with the Naval Amphibious Forces-Pacific in the Mariana Islands operating out of Saipa,n for which he was awarded the Victory Medal and the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal. During the Korean War he served aboard the SS Meredith Victory with the Military Sea Transportation Service at the Inchon Landing and Heungnam Evacuation. He was awarded the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and U.S. Gallant Ship Citation together with the Combat Action Ribbon. The Guinness Book of World Records cites the wartime action of his ship in December 1950 at Heungnam as "the greatest rescue operation ever by a single ship by evacuating 14,000 refugees" threatened with annihilation by communist forces. In 1997 and 1998 Bob having been designated by the Dept. of Defense observed the joint recovery of American war dead in North Korea and met with the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs on POW/MIA issues He received his Doctor of Law degree from Cornell University, and in 2006, in recognition of his humanitarian service during the Korean War, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Woosuk University, Jeonju, Korea.
