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JAPAN: DISASTER RELIEF

Case Study

March 2011

Sendai, Ibaraki, Fukushima, and Nagaoka Japan

THE CHALLENGE

In 2011, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1 hit the coast of Tohoku. Catastrophe was defined in this event, as the mighty earthquake thrusted a 133' tsunami wave onto Fukushima's power plants, leading to meltdowns across three reactors. The damage was unprecedented. Reports started to surface of nearly 16,000 dead and 8,500 injured or missing. 1.5 million were without water, and nearly 5 million were left without electricity. Almost 1,000,000 buildings were significantly damaged or completely leveled. I felt a personal responsibility to take care of the country that so graciously allowed me to live there for three years. 

 

THE SOLUTION

Thanks to some amazing friends in Fussa, the town I called home at the time, I was able to bring roughly 1,250 lbs of items to the Nagaoka Refuge Center, where evacuees from Sendai, Ibaraki, Fukushima, and more had relocated. My original plan was to travel to Sendai, but due to a rise in radiation levels, my travel permit got pulled. NHK news was at the donation spot when I  arrived with my friend Mendy, so we were able to share our story with them and spread the message of hope. Before our journey to the center, she and I organized a series of concerts to raise money for donations to the cause. Our concerts featured performances by hip hop dancers, hula dancers, singers, instrumentalists, a reggae band, and of course my taiko drumming team. At the concerts, I asked friends to volunteer their time to man my t-shirt sales, and with their help, I was able to raise about $2,700 from the HOPE tees I designed. I then caught wind of displaced animals - a vast majority of refuge centers did not allow pets, and so there was an influx of pets at animal shelters. I asked my friend Dawn and her daughter Livi to help me sew as many toys as we could, and we ended up with 72 cat toys and 42 dog toys, all made from scrap material by hand. We put a call out for donations and wound up with 220 lbs of dry dog food, 120 lbs of dry cat food, 554 oz wet dog food, and 247.5 oz wet cat food to give.

 

THE RESULTS

Countless hours in a borrowed van and so many miles across shaken roads were conquered. My friends were an integral part of making these efforts happen, and not to mention the caring nature of complete strangers. We were able to offer a bit of relief to overwhelmed rescue centers, and we got to know and love our neighbors that much more.

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