Robert P. Mozier, son of the late Robert H. Mozier who served as a U.S. war correspondent during the Korean War, is on a mission to find a Korean boy who formed a special bond with his father amid the conflict.
The Department of Veterans Affairs announced on Wednesday that Mozier has expressed his desire to locate a Korean aide known only by the surname KIM, who worked closely with his father during the war. Officials report that no additional information about the aide is available beyond his last name.
Mozier said that his father always spoke fondly of KIM. He’s determined to fulfill his father’s wish and reconnect with him.
Born in 1923, the elder Mozier served as a U.S. Marine Corps war correspondent in Korea from 1951 to approximately 1952.
He documented the brutal realities of the war through powerful photographs and articles, including a piece published in National Geographic in 1953 titled, Children of America and Korea: U.S. Troops Share Food, Clothing, and Shelter with Kids in a War-Ravaged Land.
The KIM that Mozier is trying to locate is a boy he encountered at a refugee camp near Changdo-ri, an area formerly part of South Korea’s Gangwon Province but now under North Korean control.
At the time of their meeting, KIM was estimated to be around 15 years old, likely born between 1935 and 1937.
He came from a Christian family in Hongcheon, and reports suggest his father had already passed away. The family had reportedly been forced to relocate from Hongcheon due to heavy bombing in the area.
KIM often accompanied Mozier on his photographic assignments. Records indicate that Mozier visited KIM’s home around Christmas, where he met the boy’s mother, grandfather, and sister.
What began as a professional relationship between a war correspondent and his aide evolved into a profound connection, with the two sharing aspects of their daily lives and families despite the chaos of war.
Their paths reportedly diverged around July 1952 when the division withdrew from the area.
He’s been trying to track down this boy since the early 1990s, Mozier explained. He’s hopeful that with the support of the Korean public and officials, he can finally reconnect with this person who meant so much to his father during the war.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is currently accepting any information related to KIM through its official website and YouTube channel.