Fans on Saturday delivered donated funds to a local historical institution as a birthday gift for Taeyang, a member of the boy band Taeyang, who was born on the anniversary of the May 18th democratic uprising.

Taeyang’s fan club “You Are the Sun, I Am the Moon” donated a total of 5.18 million won ($5,059) to The May 18 Memorial Foundation, hoping that the gift would be a “meaningful birthday gift” for the K-pop star’s 26th birthday. 

“The representative of the fan site wanted the (donation funds) to be used in making historically accurate material about the May 18 Democratic Uprising,” the spokesperson of the foundation told Money Today.

“The fund will be used in the history textbooks on the May 18 Democratic Uprising for middle school and high school students,” the spokesperson added.

On May 18, 1980, the military junta allegedly ordered a bloody military crackdown in Gwangju, 350 km south of Seoul, against pro-democracy demonstrators. Hundreds of Koreans, including civilians and students, were killed during the uprising. The movement laid out the foundations for the national transition to democracy.

The donation came after Taeyang told his fans, who were then undecided about the best gift, on his Twitter page that “I have a lot in my hands and I hope (the birthday gift) would be used for those with bigger needs.”

The fans ultimately chose the unusual gift in response to a past comment by Taeyang on his birthday.

On his birthday last year, Taeyang wrote on his Twitter page, “Today is not only my birthday … but an unforgettable day in terms of history … It means a lot to me to be born on such a meaningful day.”

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldcorp.com)