About Benjy

I initially strongly resisted adding an “about me” section to this Blog, mainly because my "trying-to-be-humble" self thinks this Blog is not about me. Anyway, I do see it prudent to portray the life events that foreshadowed the inspiration for this book.

So, here goes some awkward third-person narrative…

Kosuke Youngshin Benjamin Uyama (Benjy), a Second Generation Unificationist from North Carolina, USA, was born to a Welsh mother and a Japanese father. Benjy’s parents, Caroline & Mamoru Uyama, were matched and Blessed in marriage by the Rev. and Mrs. Sun Myung Moon in 1982 in the 6,000 couple Blessing.

September 2004 – Benjy first set off to Korea for study abroad. He studied Korean at an international school (General Orientation Program) for a year and a half, and then transferred to a traditional public Korean middle school in Seoul. Benjy shares his difficulty being the only non-Korean student in his class, but the lack of English speakers helped perpetuate his Korean proficiency. He graduated Gwan Yang Middle School as one of the top male students in his class.

October 2010 – Benjy was matched by True Parents and subsequently Blessed with a Japanese woman named Hitoe Suzaki. Luckily, she also spoke Korean because she had studied Unification Theology in Korea at Sun Moon University. To this day, Benjy & Hitoe continue to converse only in Korean.

Benjy studied Linguistics and East Asian Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

He has served as the Senior Pastor of the Unification Church of the Triangle in North Carolina.

In August of 2012, Rev. Sun Myung Moon appeared to Benjy in a dream, which later became the inspiration for his book, "Mi-Re: Learn Korean In 40 Days”