Stephen Michael White — “Mighty Mike”
June 28, 1993 – May 11, 2008
June 28, 1993 – May 11, 2008
Born in Clyde North Carolina, Stephen Michael White lived in the Appalachian Mountains of NC. Having grown up near the Great Smoky Mountain Parkway, this young Mountaineer hiked Linville Gorge as often as he fished in Sunburst.
When he camped in Shenandoah Valley, deer would come to camp. When he found a starling out of its nest too soon, he nursed her back to health. She had imprinted with Mike, therefore could not be introduced back into the wild right off.
When he left for South Korea in 2004, he took Tweety, a tamed Starling, to the Nature Preserve. He wanted to be sure she would be well cared for.
He attended Boone Montessori Pre-School and Boone Elementary, before being homeschooled from 2nd grade to 9th grade. At Hoseo University, he was a member of the English Drama Club, and had a bit part in the play, "Sorry, Wrong Number". He attended Chungju University, where he earned a certificate in Korean Language.
Prior to moving to South Korea, he went to Betsy Jeff Penn State 4H camp each summer for weeks at a time. A regular traveler to Washington DC, he attended the Van Gogh exhibit at the National Museum of Art, sparking a life long interest in expressive art and becoming an avid fan of Van Gogh. He played the guitar eloquently - other than his mother teaching him to read music, he was self taught. He took swimming, tennis, pottery, art, and sculpting lessons at Appalachian State University's Summer Enrichment Programs. He loved hiking, fishing, skiing, caving, swimming, and his dogs.
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Sparkling Promises, Book of Mike: American Teen Coming of Age In South Korea — e-book 2015
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Stephannie Kaye White, deceased. Date of death determined to be Jan 8, 2014. Remains discovered in Raleigh North Carolina Feb 3, 2014. Police report details evidence of Korean gang related killing.
Before starting his adventure to South Korea, Mike pored over every book he could find about his new home. Scouring libraries in 3 counties, From Watauga to Ashe, Mike read everything he could find about Korean Culture. Learning that token gifts were given when a new person arrives in a neighborhood (in red bag) Mike went shopping for "American Gifts" he could give his new friends in Korea, complete with small red bags. Mike's girlfriend - if there is such a thing at his age - was Korean-American. Mike was eager to embrace his sweetie's culture.
He was perceptive enough from his readings to realize winning approval of Karey's mother would be his key. In the end, she was an albatross's stone instead.
Mike applied that same enthusiasm when he prepared to travel to Japan, China and Thailand. Researching the Do's and Don'ts of our exotic destinations was old hat for Mike, who at ten, was already a globe trotter. He would make index cards with common polite phrases, written phonically, in English & the local language. He had fun making the cards and reading maps, earnest to explore the world.
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Follow Mike as he travels to South Korea for the first time, as he explores temples, trails and parks with his dogs. Read along as Mike discovers insights into the hermit kingdom. Where hermetic knowledge is fostered above science and social underpinnings are fastened into perilously impossible juxtapositions.
Spot was found one bright morning as we were walking along exploring the neighborhood. A man on a bike was kicking at a dog as he was trying to leave. It was clear the dog belonged to the man & he was dumping it off. Poor thing, she followed him down into the street, we held our breaths as traffic zoomed and the man continued to cycle. Mike leaped into action - he stepped out into traffic - holding up a hand & walking toward the frightened mutt. She cowered under a car, but at least was safely out of traffic's way. Mike cooed to her until she whimpered, crawled over to him. I knew when he looked up at me, he had found his longed for puppy. She was about 7 months old. She was a bit undernourished, but with a few vet visits & some great food, she was in tip top shape in no time.
Smudge was named for the coffee colored stain on her ear. One afternoon, Mike & I were driving around Chungju, getting a feel for the city. At a busy intersection, we saw a Korean boy (about 8 yrs old) throwing bits of meat from his kabob - out into the street - and stood laughing as the pup darted in & out of traffic in the opposite lane. As our lane inched forward Mike kept watch as the boy's mother continued to ignore her son, chatting winsomely on her handphone. Finally - traffic starts to move a bit on our side and Mike shouted "Stop" - I hit the brakes and pulled over at his insistence. He hopped out of the van and went across the street - intervening and rescuing another puppy from Korean "Vice City, animal version".
Smudge grew to be really big! We found we needed to find a forever home for her - which turned out to be in Busan. After sorting and coordinating a visa run to Fukuoka & puppy delivery, Smudge had a forever home. Mike wanted to rescue dogs from the streets, train them and find forever homes for them. I supported him in his efforts - and gave him challenges, such as earning the money for vet visits.
Another furry success, Chaco Taco was actually supposed to be eaten. Boshentang or Dog Meat Soup is a dark magic delicacy of South Korea. It is believed that if the dog is beaten severely, as it slowly dies, the meat will be rich in adrenaline and will confer upon the eater, the vitality from that dog. Which is why a female dog is never eaten by a male Korean. They prefer husky large dogs to drain of vitality. A dog like Chaco-Taco, just a little brown fur ball, Mike stole him from the back of a delivery truck. Mike had cased out the establishment and stole & released dogs whenever he could. He was nearly busted with Chaco-Taco's rescue and he hung up his Doggie Superhero cape after that caper. Chaco-Taco was adopted and relocated to Canada, then possibly Thailand.
Mike was lucky enough to have camped, hiked, & caved in NC, VA & TN - and loved it.
He became fascinated with bats and took them as a totem when he discovered they were lucky in Chinese culture. He had begun studying Chinese and wanted to be able to explore the back country one day. Mike hasn't finished traveling.
Aside from caving & snorkeling, Mike was an avid skier.
He was on the slopes at 9 years of age and was nicknamed Sonic of Appalachian Ski Resort in 2003. Known for his iconic red hat zooming down the slopes, Mike's skills and sportsmanship were expanding & developing, making him strong and independent.
On the night Mike drowned under suspicious circumstances, he was taunted by a group of boys, students of the Akideo school across the street from the sauna. He was called "Hamburger Boy" as well as being cursed in Korean. The majority of illegal protesters were students. When the police questioned me, the first question they had in the ER, "Which school does he attend?" Teen on teen gang violence and rape was a growing social trend the Daegu Police department was facing daily. The lack of juvenile laws in place made teenagers recruitment targets for local ally gangs, elite brat packs, and underground political activists. (growing membership of AES and professional political activists use of students aged 18 and under for rallying and spreading messages outside of governmental control - Anti-US Beef organizers & MBC Program staff).
When I answered the police with, "He's homeschooled" - they immediately made the assumption that the assailants were not teenagers, and that no assailing had taken place. Every move on the part of investigators was to show that Mike had somehow beat himself unconscious, then by some means, transported himself into a cesspool in the sauna, and drowned himself after fainting from having unproven temporary 'light' heart failure.
The original Korean translation of the autopsy report shows the scientist was trying to frame his findings in the light that Mike might have some as yet undiagnosed problem, such as severe retardation - or Riley's disease. With extensive medical evaluations needed for international travel & residency, any pre-existing conditions of that nature would have been self evident. Yet, in arrogance of knowing English translations would be long in coming, inaccurate and ineffective on Korean social & justice systems, both investigators within the Ministry of Justice and legal agents for the Court system, enjoyed creating a precedent by which it will be virtually impossible for any foreigner to take a Korean to court over homicide again.
Practicing blatant malfeasance of office from my attorney, to the Judiciary committee who passed verdict, the Korean system played kangaroo court with Mike's case from the start. The police refused to even open an investigation until after international pressure and 6 weeks had passed.
Seven years and counting since Mike's murder and the horrid deaths of 4 other foreigners during the Anti-US Beef riots - the producers of the erroneous report on Mad Cow disease have been charged, held liable and processed through the courts. Yet the victims of their crimes remain unacknowledged and ignored. Perhaps the Koreans feel this will 'just be a wee wrinkle' in their next life.
In the political background of Mike's case is the FTA agreement between Korea & the US, something the Bush Administration hadn't been able to push through, (due to artificially constructed social unrest - using juveniles) from resistance over the US-Beef issue. Lee Myung-bak had already slighted Mike's case, when he suddenly stopped an economic meeting - had his security detail rush him across noonday Seoul traffic - across a megalopolis to arrive at a suburban police station and demand to know why the police were doing nothing on the case of an attempted kidnapping of a pre-teen Korean girl.
The girl had been in the elevator at her apartment complex when a knife-wielding man attempted to abduct her. Her parents had tried unsuccessfully to get the police to act upon the evidence from the CCTV footage. After Lee Myung-bak's intervention, the police, using facial recognition software, were able to find the man and prosecute him.
In Mike's case, CCTV footage was also available. The sauna assured the police that 'nothing of note' was on the footage. The police, as a matter of record in the official police report, accepted this statement as irrefutable truth without reviewing the footage. Let that sink in. No police agent ever saw the CCTV footage from the night of Mike's murder. The court deemed it inadmissible as evidence at the initial hearing.
When a foreign child is murdered by Koreans, the CCTV footage must be suppressed. When a Korean child is accosted, Lee Myung-bak has an opportunity to play 'father to the nation'.
While Lee Myung-bak is playing his social drama games with child welfare in Korea, Hillary Clinton is being prepared for her Seoul visit, her first on the 2009 DOS tour of Asia. Hillary wanted a feather in her cap. A promise and progress that the Bush administration couldn't get. With the Mad Cow disease being proven as a hoax, the social climate was strong for a firm hand on the situation by Clinton. Her lack of acuity in dealing with Koreans not only made her miss her mark, her winning points turned hollow in the long term. She traded backing for Mike's case in exchange for the promise of an early signature (something inevitable politically & economically speaking) for the word and hollow promise of Korea to improve its humanitarian treatment of non-Koreans.
Was this decision by Clinton to withdraw her assistance from the case affected by a false SBI report attached to the identity theft of my name in 1997? Or did it have more to do with an easy win and a convenience for Hillary? Her track record speaks for itself on this score. Hillary is but one face of the DoS. Bottom line, the US government has more power than it needs to effect a positive outcome for expatriates, they just don't care to be troubled to do so. There's actually a class division among international Americans. Those connected diplomatically, and those who are not. Those in the former enjoy living in a protected bubble, while the latter are at the mercy of social forces at the grassroots level. Clinton stood by while the Korean government mowed the lawn - irrespective of merit or humanitarian concerns for their victims.