Nothing is impossible for a fan. Not even sending a surprise coffee truck for Korean actor Ji Chang-wook during the shooting of his drama “Melting Me Softly” which premiered on Sept. 28.
“We wanted to show our support and let him know that we are cheering him on in his comeback drama,” said Anne dela Cruz, Ji Chang-wook Philippines (JCWPH) administrator. The local fan club sent churros and drinks for the actor and the staff working on the drama that day. They chose churros because it’s the actor’s favorite snack.
Their initial target amount was P30,000. But through the generosity of its more than 1,000-strong active members and from merchandise proceeds, they were able to raise more than P80,000 for their first solo fan project in Korea.
The extra funds allowed them to get more food and drinks. They made sure that they offered the same choices for everyone because this was what Chang-wook wanted. He wanted everyone to be treated fairly and without discrimination.
JCWPH, through its administrators Dela Cruz, Angel Ibanez and Stephy Dolor, coordinated closely with the actor’s Korean fan club, Day Rock. The Korean fan club arranged everything in Korea, including the sourcing of the coffee truck.
Mechandise
It was not the first time the local club worked closely with the Korean fan club. They supported Day Rock’s cup sleeve event for the actor’s birthday.
When the trend was the ordering of merchandise from Korea to the Philippines, JCWPH sent So In Love Bench perfume to Korea. This international friendship is all about supporting each other.
The truck arrived on the set on Sept. 18. It had a banner that said, “Let’s work through this lifetime together.” This was to answer Chang-wook’s letter to them before he entered the military in 2017. The actor wrote, “Ten years of my career feel like a fierce running. I feel happy and sometimes lonely on this road.”
Dela Cruz said that they knew the actor would thank them for their effort.
What they didn’t expect was that he wouldn’t do it on the same day. They were told that he was extremely busy on the day the coffee truck arrived.
Their disappointment turned to excitement when Chang-wook finally posted about the truck in the afternoon of the following day. The actor posted on his Instagram stories the date the truck arrived. He wrote “Thanks” with heart emojis. But it was his second post that sent their fangirl hearts into overdrive. He shared the club’s logo in his stories, too.
“The second post made some of us cry with happiness because he zoomed in on our logo. It meant that he knows us now. All the hardship that we went through to work on his fan club in the Philippines was worth it,” Dela Cruz said.
JCWPH’s next project is to donate to the Cancer Institute of the Philippine General Hospital for Ji Chang-wook’s 11th debut anniversary.
