It has been about a century and a half since the Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce and Navigation was signed between the Joseon Kingdom of Korea and the United States on May 22, 1882. Accordingly, Korea dispatched its first ambassador, Park Jeong-yang, to the United States as part of the Korean Legation in Washington in 1887.
The 21st Korea-America Friendship Night ceremony was convened on Dec. 5 at Walker Hall in Grand Walkerhill Seoul, and was sponsored by the Korea-America Association (KAA), chaired by Dr. Choi Joong-kyung. The highlight of the annual dinner event was the 21st Korea-America Friendship Awards. The awardees were chosen as the late Major General (MG) Joseph Pringle Cleland of the U.S. Army and his wife, Florence Emily Cadotte Cleland.