11 Mar 2016

Aid For Japan in The Telegraph today

by | posted in: News |

In their coverage of the 5th Anniversary of the 2011 Earthquake/Tsunami, The Telegraph spoke to Aid For Japan founder Akemi Solloway on the challenges facing Maria – one of the many orphans that Aid For Japan supports.

“Like so many of the children we work with, Maria has shown incredible resilience in the face of tragedy. And today, she will go to school as normal, do her homework as normal and do little to acknowledge that another year has passed.”

Maria’s hometown Rikuzentakata is a coastal city in Iwate prefecture which was devastated by the tsunami in 2011. Maria’s immediate family were among 2,000 out of 19,000 residents who lost their lives.

Aid For Japan continues to lend support and care for orphans such as Maria, but this article helps to draw attention of the plight of these children to a wider audience.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/12190685/Japan-tsunami-country-marks-five-years-since-tragedy-struck.html
10 Mar 2016

Aid For Japan in The Guardian today

by | posted in: News |

As part of their coverage of the 5th Anniversary of the 2011 Earthquake/Tsunami, The Guardian newspaper has an in-depth feature by Justin McCurry looking at the plight of orphans in post-tsunami Japan.

Among the people the newspaper spoke to was Aid For Japan founder Akemi Solloway, covering the practical problems that many orphans face – as well as looking at the reconstruction of areas such as Rikuzentakata which were struck by the tragedy.

“It’s a strange thing to be an orphan in Japan” comments Akemi, “not least of all because the adoption of children is very rare, so many people remain unaware that it’s even a possibility. Foster care is also uncommon. This means that many of the children we work with are either entirely on their own or living with elderly grandparents, and are unlikely to ever find another home or family to care for them. Emotionally they are simply traumatised.”

The long-term welfare of the region’s traumatised children is a cause for concern among local authorities, as Rikuzentakata and other communities undertake massive reconstruction projects that will cost at least 26tn yen ($232 bn) over the next few years.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/10/five-years-after-japans-tsunami-orphan-victims-lament-their-lost-parents
29 Feb 2016

‘Washing Over Me’ to raise funds for Aid For Japan

by | posted in: Fundraising, News |

With the 5th Anniversary of the Japan Earthquake/Tsunami almost upon us, author Benjamin Brook has kindly offered to donate proceeds form his novel Washing Over Me to Aid For Japan.

Set against a backdrop of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011, Washing Over Me is a tale of loss and love, of the destructive power of nature and the resilience of humankind.

In the height of the Tokyo summer, Shoichi sits at his wife’s bedside hoping that today will be the day when she wakes from her coma. Without Kimiko, he finds himself lost in the modern world. Frequently daydreaming, his mind wanders back through the past to key moments in their life together: breaded pork cutlets, unusually coloured tomatoes and the most beautiful sunrise he has ever seen. Shoichi also lives in fear. How will he cope with the loss of yet another person whom he loves so dearly?

In the depths of her mind, it is early spring and Kimiko is in Ofunato, a small coastal town in the northeast of Japan. As ten-year-old Kimiko wakes up that morning all she can think about is the cold and how much longer she can stay in bed before succumbing to the aroma from breakfast that is drifting up the stairs. Right up to the point when the earthquake strikes, she has no idea that this is the day when her world will be turned upside down. There is only one person who understands what she went through and she needs to get back to Shoichi, wherever and whenever he may be.

Speaking about the novel, Benjamin Brook adds: “11 March 2016 marks the fifth anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. As well as the loss of life that this devastating event resulted in, hundreds of children also lost their parents and families. To support the orphans of this tragedy, any royalties received from the sale of this book over the next three months will be donated to the charity Aid For Japan.”

You can order the book via Amazon: Washing Over Me
22 Feb 2016

Aid For Japan in Fukushima

by | posted in: Events, News |
Last summer saw Aid For Japan take a team of volunteers to Japan as part of our annual residential course. The charity’s Japanese representative Sumika Hayakawa was on hand to help and provided her own personal take when they visited Fukushima…

“After the residential course with orphans, the English volunteers came and stayed in my parent’s second house in Fukushima. While they stayed in Fukushima, Tom and Emile did a mini charity concert in the garden and the neighbourhood attended (and that the local newspaper covered)”.

“The manager of this second house gathered people. If I am alone I cannot do anything, but many people helped this concert. Thank you to my parents and grandfather. My mother cooked a lovely meal for the people. My father gathered musical equipment and electric goods. I appreciate that grandfather changed his schedule because of this. Thank you for joining this concert, neighbourhood. Some of you lost people important to you due to the Tsunami”.

“Thank you for coming from England to doing fundraising activity in Japan. Tom is 18 years old, and Emile is 17 years old. I am amazed that they do this activity for Japanese children who lost parents. I really appreciate their action”.

“I enjoyed talking about anime with children very much, such as Death Note and Attack on Titan. I had a culture shock to know that titles such as Naruto and Bleach are too old fashioned. This is a generation shock. I always ask about voice actors of anime too. I am glad to know that I am otaku. Even if we use a different language, we can talk about anime”.

“The music was beautiful. Tom’s guitar and his lovely voice, Emile’s good electronic organ”.

“I learned this in summer: If we all gather and help each other, we can do something”.

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