Korean-American Hyun Moos-up is 91. The Niles resident knows he is running out of time to hear from the two sisters he left behind when the Korean War broke out in 1950.

Young-Whan Cho was 13 when he came to the U.S. from North Korea without his mother. He reunited with her briefly at her deathbed, but the Glenview man still doesn't know anything about his siblings.

Moss-up and Cho are just two of thousands of Korean-Americans who were separated from their families when Korea split into nations. As they grow older, many fear they may not get peace of mind or a chance to meet or hear of the relatives they left behind.

"This is what's happening to the separated families, they are expiring very fast," said Cha-hee Lee Stanfield, who was separated from her brother and father after WWII ended.

With the clock ticking, Chicago's Korean-American Community is leading a campaign to pressure the U.S. government to help them get in touch with the loved ones they lost more than 50 years ago.

The Saemsori Project, which began two months ago in Washington, D.C., is creating a nationwide database of the names of Korean-Americans who were separated from their families in North Korea.

Chicago's Korean community is bringing the Saemsori Project to the area on Thursday at Albany Park's public library, which Stanfield manages.

"We need help from families to collect data and we need them to get Congress and senators to help us," Lee said. "We would like them to start negotiating with North Korea as soon as possible because people are dying."

Kyu Young Park, author of Korean Americans in Chicago, said Koreans got separated because many didn't think the war would last. "They didn't know there would be a permanent separation," she said. "But when the war broke out many decided to emigrate to the US for educational opportunities for their children or to be better economically."

Park said their trepidation is understandable. "They are anxious to be reunited with their family members because their parents won't last long," she said. "They want to see them before they die."

The campaign sponsored by the Korean American Coalition of the Midwest, was kickstarted with the help of U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Highland Park). In 2001 he arranged for Stanfield and a delegation of families to meet with then-Secretary of State Colin Powell.

The families were told their case would be top priority when Washington normalized relations with Pyongyang.

"We don't know when the relationship will be normalized," Stanfield said. "The way it's going now, it looks like it will take time."

Time is not something Stanfield can afford to lose. The Edgebrook resident is 65 and she is desperate to hear from the brother she hasn't seen in 56 years. Stanfield was born in Manchuria and lived there with her family until WWII ended. After the war, she, her mother, three brothers and two sisters moved to South Korea.

Her father and other brother stayed behind for business and they soon got trapped after the Chinese-Korean border was closed. When the Chinese government finally allowed them back into Korea, the Korean War had started. One of her brothers was taken into the North Korean army while the other three fought for South Korea.

Her father died years ago, but Stanfield said she believes her brother is still alive. "I heard he was a school teacher," Stanfield said. "I believe he is retired now."

In 1968 she came to the U.S. to work on a master's degree at Indiana University. Her mother, brother and two sisters followed suit in 1974, but they made Chicago their home.

Three years ago, Stanfield tracked down five Chicagoans with family in North Korea. But three have died, one moved to another state and one was in a nursing home.

"For years we have been living our tragedy cause we were grateful for the U.S. government," she said. "We didn't want them to know we had relatives in a Communist country."<BOLD> </BOLD> But Stanfield doesn't want to resort to illegal channels to get information about her family, a step many have taken out of desperation. "I heard people pay as much as $20,000 to brokers to smuggle relatives to China," she said.

"People are desperate -- they will do anything to find out about their family members."

She said this must be done legally. "A lot of people can't do that. They don't have connections or the money," she said. "This has to be done on a government level. Time is our worst enemy now."

Dr. Stephen Linton, who runs the Eugene Bell Foundation, a co-sponsor of the Saemsori Project, said the initiative is not just important for the 2 million Korean-Americans. "It is important for all Americans because we have a very long history of welcoming immigrants to our shores," he said.

He said the U.S. had opened a number of dialogue channels with North Korea, but the issue of reuniting families has still not been adequately addressed.

"We are interested in North Korean refugees and proliferation," Linton said. "But we have neglected arguably one of the issues close to home, which is our senior citizens finding their loved ones."

He echoed Stanfield's concerns that many Korean-Americans won't disclose information about their relatives for fear they would be shunned by society.

"Many have suffered for decades as American citizens and many of them are afraid to come forward because it may make them look suspect," he said. "We need to give these people some closure before it's too late."

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Medill Chicago News Service — Northwestern University