10
Oct 2011
On October 1, the long-standing business of the Takahashi Tokuji Store, established in 1905, recommenced business operations.
At the time of the disaster in March, a 7-meter tsunami hit the store which was producing kamaboko (minced fish products) and the store was filled with mud of 20cm in depth.
This report is about the “fire-lighting ceremony” which was held to celebrate this occasion.
08
Oct 2011
The second half in the report following Cleaning Team Assistant Director Ichijo Kenji, who has been in Ishinomaki since March 21 and is responsible for debris clearance and home cleaning activities.
06
Oct 2011
As the local needs change with every day, the Peace Boat volunteers are also required to adapt to developments in their varied activities. This report follows Cleaning Team Assistant Director Ichijo Kenji for a day. Mr Ichijo, known as Mantle, has been in Ishinomaki since March 21 when he travelled ahead to prepare to receive the first 50 volunteers, and since then has been responsible for debris clearance and home cleaning activities.
05
Oct 2011
Since Peace Boat launched its relief activities in Ishinomaki, the food provision team has prepared a total of more than 100,000 meals. This report follows the Assistant Directors (ADs) who have long been working with this team, Morinaga Yoko (in charge of the kitchen) and Kitamura Kazumi (in charge of support towards self-sufficiency).
Assistant Directors are responsible for coordinating volunteers, in groups of around five persons each. Peace Boat appoints ADs for each kind of work, according to their experiences and skills. These staff work in the field long-term, and through being familiar with the changes in required relief activities play a vital role in ensuring that the work undertaken is safe, smooth and efficient.
05
Oct 2011
Peace Boat will be holding a special event on October 13, reporting and looking back on the activities in the 200 days since the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, and announcing the launch of the Peace Boat Disaster Relief Volunteer Leader Training Programme. This programme will train people in disaster relief skills to ensure that the effects of future disasters can be mitigated. Please join us to learn about our work, our future goals, and to connect with other Peace Boat supporters.
03
Oct 2011
The “Orahono Recovery Festival – Ishinomaki/Onogawa/Higashi Matsushima” will be held on Sunday October 16.
Despite recent difficulties including the severe damage caused by Typhoon 15, local youth associations, fishing and agricultural industry representatives, the chamber of commerce and tourism association have come together to hold a “recovery festival.” The cities of Ishinomaki, Onagawa and Higashi Matsushima will work together to hold a recovery festival in the Ishinomaki region for the first time since the disaster.
01
Oct 2011
On September 25, the 8th Tricolore Music Festival was held in Ishinomaki! It was uncertain whether or not the festival would be held this year because of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, but the local residents’ passion for music and strong desire to work towards recovery and revitalize the local community was the driving force behind this year’s festival.
30
Sep 2011
Orientations, training and safety measures for volunteers have been developed greatly as the activities have proceeded over the past six months. Read here for further information about such issues.
21
Sep 2011
New 15-second videos Vol. 8 to 11 covering Peace Boat’s activities in Ishinomaki have been uploaded to Youtube by the Ganbatte 365 project introduced earlier on this website.
See below for two clips of Peace Boat efforts supporting the production of Ogatsu stone accessories and Peace Boat volunteers interacting with local shop owners.
17
Sep 2011
Taylor Anderson was an assistant English teacher from the United States who lost her life in the tsunami. Taylor was teaching English at 7 schools in Ishinomaki city, a place she was known to love. Four members of her family came to Ishinomaki on September 8.
Peace Boat was contacted by Taylor’s family because they wanted to volunteer. As a result, the Anderson family participated in Peace Boat’s clean-up activities in the Shintate region.
We interviewed Taylor’s father Andy about his visit to Japan and his motivation for joining the volunteer activities.