9 Idols Who Belong to 'Honor Society' — What Are Qualifications to Join Group?

By Eunice Dawson Dec 10, 2023

Aside from being some of the richest K-pop idols, THESE K-stars also belong to the "Honor Society," proving abundance.

A so-called "noblesse oblige," a French term for a noble's moral obligations, is expected from people in the high-ranking social classes or the top 0.05%.

As society becomes modern, the "noblesse oblige" is now in the form of donations and other activities, such as the privileged people lending their hands to those in need.

In K-pop, there are few well-known idols who, regardless of their wealth and success at a young age, don't forget to look back from where they came from and practice this moral obligation through donations and sponsorships.

Thanks to their huge love for humanity, their donations exceeded USD 75.9k (100 million KRW), leading them to join the "Honor Society."

Here Are 9 K-pop Idols Who Are Part of 'Honor Society'

1. Girls' Generation YoonA

In 2015, SNSD YoonA became the first-ever idol to become a member of the "Honor Society."

Since 2010, she has been engaged in various social activities and donation activities by participating in year-end sharing to help low-income families every year.

She has then accumulated over USD 228k (300 million won) in donations in 2018, three years after joining the "Honor Society."

In 2020, she donated about 80k USD (100 million won) amid COVID-19.

2. Bae Suzy

Around the time YoonA joined the "Honor Society," former Miss A Bae Suzy, who is also known for being a "donation angel," entered the group of high-value donors in 2015.

She has been steadily donating since 2012 and as of November 2022, her donations exceeded USD 380k (500 million won).

In 2023, it is expected that she will break her personal record after she donated $80k twice in South Korea and during an earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

3. IU

IU, who has continued to donate and do good deeds by donating every debut anniversary, is also a member of the Honor Society, a group of high-value donors of love fruit.

As of September, the cumulative donation alone is known to be more than USD 3.4 million (4.5 billion KRW) and in 2019, she was selected as the youngest Asian donation hero by Forbes in the United States.

In September, to commemorate her 15th debut anniversary, she donated a total of $228k (300 million won) to ASAN Medical Center in Seoul, the Korea National Association of Child Welfare, and the Seoul Metropolitan Children's Hospital.

4. AOA Seolhyun

In 2018, AOA Seolhyun joined the club after just a year after actively donating and volunteering in 2017.

In 2020, she helped the National Disaster Relief Association by donating $38k.

5. Red Velvet Wendy

In May 2021, Red Velvet Wendy was listed as a member of "Honor Society" after donating $80k in 2020 to support COVID-19 damage.

At the time, she garnered huge praise as she just had an accident and was being treated but she didn't forget to give back to the community.

6. SEVENTEEN Hoshi

In June 2021, SEVENTEEN Hoshi donated $80k to the Namyangju Welfare Foundation through the Gyeonggi Northern Social Welfare Community Chest of Korea.

Hoshi gave a helping hand when he heard that more and more neighbors in the community needed a helping hand as the pandemic prolonged and corporate and individual sponsorships decreased.

This made him immediately a member of the club.

7. Super Junior Heechul

In March 2022, Heechul became a member of the group after he donated &80k won to support forest fire damage relief in Gyeongbuk, Uljin, and Samcheok, Gangwon.

Earlier in 2019, he also donated $28k to alleviate the impact of the forest fires in Gangwon Province and another $38k in 2020 for COVID-19 damages.

8. NCT Doyoung

In February 2023, NCT 127 Doyoung was listed as a member of the Honor Society after he delivered $80 in donations to the Community Chest of Korea, asking for use to recover from the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

He has continued to share activities, including support for forest fire damage relief in Uljin, Gyeongsangbuk-do, and Samcheok, Gangwon-do in 2022.