Rob Mangold’s report of his fourth trip to Tohoku is required reading for anyone unsure of just how vital are the funds raised by last Saturday’s Bring & Buy Sale. It’s also a lesson in the positive and transforming power of everyone’s individual efforts. Rob and his team of volunteers are absolute heroes. Here’s an excerpt (click the link below for the full report):
Wow, the people up there are amazing. No-one is sitting around waiting for help, they are out there doing it themselves. Very happy to see that our man Takashi had continued in our absence to expand the house he had built, and was living there with his wife and daughter with a wood fired bath and electricity.
The Jietai (military) are still everywhere, and god love them, they are doing a fantastic job, tackling project after project with everything they have got.
Aside from them, it is still the small NPOs that seem to be accomplishing most of the other work, on very limited or purely volunteer budgets. Where the hell is the RED CROSS and what are they doing with the billions received?
We too did accomplish a lot I think. Distributing 21 washing machines, 18 refrigerators, 10 microwaves and 14 electric fans to Ishinomaki city, the town of Kobuchi Hama, Aji Shima Island and the newly opening shelter in the washed out school building in Funakoshi. Cleaned out one building, tore out one dangerous ceiling, took down one block wall and assisted in the removal of debris from the town of Ohara. We took 18 broken windows out of the second floor of the school and brought them back to Kyoto for repair, and raised some of the funds for that today at a charity event.
Looking very much forward to getting those windows back in the school so that people can start living there in peace without all the sand, dust and rain blowing in on them.
LINK to the full report.
Would you like to help but are unable to devote the time to go up north? Right now IDRO Japan urgently requires a. volunteer translators (Japanese to English) and b. volunteer staff to assist in clerical/computer work. Here are the details: LINK a LINK b
More links:
About IDRO Japan
Volunteer with IDRO Japan
Contact IDRO JAPAN at idrojapan[at]gmail.com ~ [at] = @
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