In Memory of Hyoja Moon Hong

Spouse: Rev. Dae Hee Hong
Children: NanYoung, Seongwoo, NanJoo
DOB: September 26, 1958
Blessing: October 14, 1982, 6,000 Couples
Ascension: September 29, 2026
Seonghwa: A family-level CheonBo Seonghwa will be held with family on Oct. 3, 2026
Memorial Service: Sunday, October 11, at 11 AM in the Founders Room of the Washington Times Building
Zoom: To Be Announced
GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-hyoja-moon-hong

Hyoja Moon Hong lived a life of deep faith, quiet sacrifice, devotion to True Parents, and loving service to her family and community. She was born in Yeosu, in South Jeolla Province, on the southern coast of Korea. From her family’s home she could see the sea. As a girl, she loved fishing and gathering sea snails along the shore with her two older sisters. That love of the ocean stayed with her throughout her life.

Hyoja was the youngest of three daughters and was raised by their mother alone. A deep spiritual sensitivity was part of the family. Her grandmother was a deeply spiritual woman who lived much like a Buddhist monk, with a shaved head, and was known to have visions of things to come. Her mother also had a spiritual openness. When Rev. Hong visited her after his Blessing with Hyoja, she told him, “I saw you in my dreams.”

Hyoja’s own life of faith began early. She joined the Unification Church while still in middle school. Her middle sister had joined first and later brought their mother and sisters. Her eldest sister received the Blessing among the 777 Couples, and her middle sister also married and was Blessed.

During her middle and high school years, Hyoja gave much of her time to the church in Yeosu, which had a congregation of about 100 members. She was also chosen as a class leader at school. After graduating from high school, she worked for a small company doing office and accounting work.

In 1981, when the time came for the matching, Hyoja approached this important moment with some hesitation and arrived late. She was still standing at the gate when True Father called her forward and matched her with Dae Hee Hong, who was then a CARP leader in Seoul. They received the Blessing in 1982 as part of the 6,000 Couples.

For the first three and a half years after their Blessing, Hyoja and her husband served separately in public mission before beginning their family life together. Hyoja lived in churches and served as an itinerant church worker in many places, while Rev. Hong led CARP in Seoul. Around 1984 they began their family in Suwon, where Rev. Hong was regional CARP director for Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces. Hyoja then devoted herself to raising their children.

In 1990 Rev. Hong came to the United States for graduate study, and in 1991 Hyoja followed with the children to New Jersey. While her husband studied, she helped support the family by working in a nail salon, where she became very skilled in nail art.

In 2000 Rev. Hong was appointed Regional Director in Florida, and the family moved to Miami. Hyoja continued working to help support the family, but she also became a motherly presence to many members in the region. If someone needed help, she did what she could. She was naturally energetic and active, but she never needed to be at the center. Much of what she did was quiet and behind the scenes.

While they were living in Miami, at a time when True Father was traveling throughout America, Hyoja began a 40-day fast for the protection and success of True Parents’ mission in America. It was a powerful expression of how seriously she took her life of faith and her devotion to True Parents. Rev. Hong tried to persuade her not to undertake such a demanding condition, but she was determined. She continued working at the nail salon for the first 30 days and spent the final ten days in bed. A photo taken during that time was reported through Dr. Yang, then the continental director, to True Mother, who sent Hyoja one of her own rings to help her heal. Hyoja recovered quickly.

When True Father ascended in 2012, Hyoja began another 40-day fast. After 21 days, True Mother let it be known through Dr. Yang that it was not the time for such fasting, and Hyoja ended the condition shortly before Foundation Day. Rev. Hong remembers her determination with affection: “She has much stronger faith than me. I cannot fast even 21 days.”

In later years Rev. Hong served as True Mother’s special envoy to Taiwan and then to the Dominican Republic. Hyoja visited him in Taiwan, and together they traveled from Taipei to Kaohsiung. 

Once their children were grown, Hyoja joined her husband in the Dominican Republic, where they served from 2014 to 2018. Beginning in 2018, Rev. Hong served as regional president for Central America, based in Mexico City.

As the years passed, Hyoja began having increasing difficulty with her memory and eventually developed Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. In her final years, she was cared for in hospice in Maryland, close to her children, while Rev. Hong received medical treatment in Korea. Through those difficult years, the family remained united in love and faith, surrounding Hyoja with the same kind of care she had given so freely to others throughout her life.

Hyoja ascended to the spiritual world on September 29, 2026, just days after her 68th birthday. She is survived by her husband, Rev. Dae Hee Hong; her children NanYoung Baer, Seongwoo Hong, and NanJoo Hong; her son-in-law Gamaliel Baer and daughter-in-law Mihyang Hong-Lim; and seven grandchildren.

Hyoja’s life was not one of seeking recognition. She simply gave herself—to Heavenly Parent, to True Parents, to her husband and children, and to the many people who crossed her path. Her faith was expressed through the way she lived, served, sacrificed, and cared for others.

Her family now sends her on with love and gratitude into the eternal spiritual world, trusting that the bonds of true love formed in this life do not end with physical death.  From the shores of Yeosu to the many places she served throughout her life, Hyoja carried with her a deep faith, a generous heart, and a quiet love that reached far beyond herself.

Seonghwa:  A family-level CheonBo Seonghwa will be held with family on Oct. 3, 2026.

Memorial Service: Sunday, October 11, at 11 AM in the Founders Room of the Washington Times Building

Zoom: To be announced

To support the family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-hyoja-moon-hong