Rep. Min Byung-doo of the ruling Democratic Party said Wednesday that the National Assembly Member’s Prize will be awarded to three middle school students for exhibiting good citizenship behavior after they helped an elderly man who had fallen down from cold shock.

The three award winners -- Uhm Chang-min, Jeong Ho-kyun and Shin Sei-hyun -- attend Jeonnong Middle School. Rep. Min will be sending them the award sometime next week.

Uhm and his friends reported having discovered the elderly man, lying unconsciously on the floor of Dapsimni Market in Dongdaemun, on their way to school around 8 a.m., Monday. 

Witnesses reported seeing the three work together to help the victim. Uhm was seen to have propped the elderly man up onto his knee, Jeong to have called 119 and Shin to have covered the man with his own long, padded coat. Monday morning‘s temperature fell below 11 degrees Celsius.

After seeing the elderly man regain consciousness, the three students arrived at school late around 8:45 a.m.

Following reports from witnesses in the Dongdaemun district, the lawmaker of the district requested that the three students be recommended as the winners of the Good Citizen Award.

The school then followed up with the request by turning in the preliminary application to the Assembly on Tuesday. Teachers at the middle school commended their behavior and said that the “students always showed good character, volunteered frequently and would often stand up for the weak.”

By Catherine Chung (cec82@heraldcorp.com)