“Jeon Jun-woo and Kim Won-jung took orders and served customers themselves” — 12 Lotte players spend a special day with people with developmental disabilities… donate 20 million won to support self-reliance

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Lotte Giants players met fans not at a baseball stadium, but at cafes. Team captain Jeon Jun-woo (40), along with Kim Won-jung (33), Han Dong-hee (27), and Park Se-woong (31), among 12 other players, worked as one-day cafe staff alongside six individuals with developmental disabilities, participating in activities to support their self-reliance.

Lotte announced on the 2nd that it concluded the “3rd Dream Cafe” event held on the 30th of last month to help people with developmental disabilities in the Busan region achieve self-reliance.

The Dream Cafe, first launched in 2024, is a social contribution program designed to allow individuals with developmental disabilities to experience actual work environments and build the competencies necessary for social self-reliance. This marks its third year.

This event was conducted in cooperation with the Korea Institute for Development of Disability Rehabilitation Busan Metropolitan City Disabled Children and Developmental Disabilities Support Center, Sasang District Disability Welfare Center, and Busan Brain Injury Welfare Center.

The event venues were three locations: Stanbro Sajik Baseball Stadium branch, Krispy Kreme Donuts Busan Yeonsan branch, and Lotteria Busan Danggam branch. The 12 Lotte players and six participants with developmental disabilities were divided among the stores to welcome fans.

The players formed teams with the participants with developmental disabilities, taking orders directly and preparing drinks and food. They also shared the task of serving completed meals to customers, participating in actual store operations.

The Dream Cafe also served as an opportunity for Lotte players, whose season has ended, to meet fans again. Lotte finished this year’s regular season in seventh place with a record of 64 wins, three draws, and 77 losses (winning percentage 0.454). Although they defeated the Doosan Bears 7-4 in their final game of the season, they failed to advance to the postseason for the ninth consecutive year since 2017.

Following this, the club moved to restructure by parting ways with former manager Kim Tae-hyung and appointing Lee Dong-wook (52) as the new manager and Lee Taek-geun (46) as the new general manager. The player group has also continued training and community contribution activities since the end of the season.

The Dream Cafe is one such activity. At the first event in 2024, Lotte players made drinks and participated in serving alongside baristas with developmental disabilities. Last year, 16 players, including Jeon Jun-woo, Kim Won-jung, and Yoon Dong-hee, along with eight individuals with developmental disabilities, met fans at four stores in the Busan region.

Jeon Jun-woo, who participated in this year’s event, said, “It was a very meaningful time to be on one team with people with developmental disabilities and welcome the fans who visited the store.” He added, “I hope this event will be a small help toward the social self-reliance of people with developmental disabilities and lead to warm interest from the local community.”

Financial support was also provided. The Lotte club and Lotte Holdings donated a total of 20 million won, with 10 million won each given to the Sasang District Disability Welfare Center and the Busan Brain Injury Welfare Center, to support continuous education and self-reliance for people with developmental disabilities. Lotte GRS is also scheduled to donate a portion of the revenue generated from cafe operations that day to a project supporting the self-reliance of individuals with developmental disabilities.

In addition to the Dream Cafe, Lotte is conducting various social contribution activities, including support for young adults preparing for independence in the Busan region, cultural and sports programs for students from vulnerable groups, and donations to the local community. Last year, the club carried out social contribution donations totaling 900 million won, including sponsorship of UNICEF and support for children’s books and airline tickets.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original