In April 1975, a group of students were met with plumes of tear gas near Kyung Hee University in Seoul. They were trying to march in protest against then-President Park Chung-hee, father of former President Park Geun-hye, who had controlled the country under an iron-fisted rule since 1972.

Moon Jae-in, then in the third year of law school, was standing at the front line, when he was struck down by a tear gas canister.

After blacking out for a moment, Moon recalled he felt somebody was sitting close to him, wiping his face with a wet towel.

“I opened my eyes, and it was Kim Jung-sook, who became my wife,” Moon said at JTBC‘s talk show “Ssulzun” on Feb. 2.

Forty-two years later, Kim remains by Moon’s side, helping her husband become president.

Back in college, Kim, now 63, was two years junior to Moon, majoring in vocal performance. The couple went to school together, and became much closer after Kim helped him at the protest. 

Their love story, which now captivates the media, was not an easy one, as Moon as an avid student protester, was detained by the police several times for partaking in protests against military rule.

In 1975, Moon was forcibly recruited to the elite special forces after being released from a detention center, pulling them apart once more.

In 1980, with Kim constantly at his side, Moon passed the state bar exam to lead a distinguished legal career as a human rights lawyer. A year later, the couple finally got married. 

Kim worked as a choir member of Seoul Metropolitan Chorus upon graduation but did not pursue the career further after marriage.

As a former vocalist, Kim has seemed confident about standing in front of a large audience to support his husband.

During the short but intense 60-day presidential campaign, Kim rarely missed opportunities to join him on the campaign trail, making speeches and taking selfies with Moon’s supporters.

Often referred to as a “special envoy to Honam,” Moon’s wife, who hails from Seoul, is credited with increasing support from the southwestern regions as Moon won there against expectations.

Honam, referring to Gwangju and the Jeolla provinces, was deemed crucial for Moon as a stronghold of liberal support. In the 2012 presidential election, nearly 9 out of 10 residents voted for Moon, the leading liberal candidate at the time. He ended up narrowly losing the race to Park.

“After my husband lost in the election, I could feel despair and sadness in Jeolla and Gwangju,” Kim said in an interview with a local media outlet on March 21.

To win their support again, the would-be first lady has regularly visited the region since last fall -- most of the time without her husband. There, she cooked for the elderly at local welfare centers, while listening to their concerns. 

Kim now joins Moon at the presidential house, and she says her role has been to be herself, and help her husband do what he must do, as always.

As a mother of two, she may look to help more women as the first lady.

“I have daughter and daughter-in-law who are raising their own children,” Kim said.

Eager to boost the country’s low birth rate, Kim said she’d like to spend more time with experts to make our society a good place to have children.

“I’d like to help working women, those taking a break from work to take care of their kids, and women expecting babies.”

By Bak Se-hwan (sh@heraldcorp.com)