Tsunami/Earthquake relief work

Back in June, Matt and I spent 6 days up in Northern Japan with 7 High School students from FIS. It was an incredible trip. I took a journal with me and decided I'll just type up what I wrote in my journal about the days we were there...

Sunday, July 19
8:57 am (on the plane)
Caught the 6:07 train and promptly arrived at Fukuoka Airport 21 minutes later. Unbelievably, every student was there on time - Matt and I were the last ones to show up but still on time. We briefly introduced ourselves to several of the parents. It has been an emotional morning. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared. I'm afraid of being responsible for 7 teenagers for 6 days in an area that I know very little about. Will we have enough food, what if someone gets hurt, what if, what if, what if... These thoughts keep racing through my head.

A news crew was at the airport to film our departure and also interview Matt and some of the students. Matt truly is the heart and soul behind this service project. He has worked tirelessly to get this off the ground. I am overwhelmingly proud of him and grateful to be here to support and help him.

While we were in the airport, one of the security guards stopped me to compliment our shirts. I told her we were on our way to Sendai to do volunteer work. She bowed and said thank you. I am so proud of the students joining us. I know they are nervous too and I will do everything I can to protect and comfort them.

12:32 pm
Matt and Max have navigated our way through Tokyo! I never imagined that at some point in my life I'd be in a full size van in the middle of Tokyo!! So far so good - we're heading north!

7:17 am Monday, July 20
I swear I felt a minor earthquake last night. It was very brief and it felt like someone just lightly shook my bed. The only thing was, I wasn't in a bed - I was on a wooden floor in a cabin wrapped up in a sleeping bag.

9:28 pm Monday, July 20
This morning we went downtown Sendai to deliver a letter to the Mayor's office from the Fukuoka Prefecture. After that, we went over to Tohoku International School (TIS). TIS was hit hard by the earthquake. The Head of School, James, and his wife Alana took us through their school and explained what happened the day the earthquake struck. Almost every book in their library was thrown off the shelf. Computers, desks and lockers all tipped over and crashed to the ground. Kids that were standing in the door jams looking for safety were being tossed around. They said it was almost impossible to stabilize their feet. In the entrance of the school there is a huge sky light that came crashing down during the quake. They used to have a table that sat under it and students would often hang out there during their breaks. Luckily, no one was sitting there the moment the earthquake struck. They told us the sound was deafening - alarms and sirens were blaring, glass was smashing and everything was toppling over. The greatest gift to that school is that no children nor teachers were lost that day.

About 20 or so students, parents and teachers that couldn't make it home or weren't able to contact their families ended up camping out at James and Alana's house. They said they went several days with out running water, food or gas. Most went for a month without gas. They built a campfire to stay warm and boiled snow to get water. One thing that James mentioned is that the very next day parents, students and teachers kept showing up at the school and everyone just started to clean it up. They never had to ask for help - people just did it. It took them about a month to get their school back in working order. It's hard to imagine what it looked like since today it seems "normal". Their stories however, paint a vivid image.

In the afternoon, we went to meet Abe-san. He is the gentleman that we're going to help for a couple of days. Abe-san lost his house to the tsunami. It is completely gone - not one wall is standing. There is a boat, about 40 ft long, that was launched up onto his property. Debris is scattered everywhere. His warehouse did survive and is still standing strong but it is filled with rubbish from the tsunami and stuff has been thrown everywhere. I've never seen so much broken glass in my life. We've got a lot of work to do.



9:36 Wednesday, June 22
We worked both Tuesday and part of today at Abe-san's warehouse. Today was supposed to be our last day with Abe-san but we decided to come back tomorrow. We felt like there was some unfinished business and we want to take care it. We're a motivated group. I'm feeling good.

I love working with Abe-san. He is so grateful to have us there. Abe-san has been practicing Martial Arts for over 40 years and he invited us to attend his class at the University last night. I haven't laughed this hard in quite awhile. It was great seeing him in a different light. Sadly, I can't speak a lick of Japanese and he doesn't speak English so our conversations are rather limited but with our students translating - I know that we're enjoying each others company.


We just got back from an afternoon with TIS. The students hung out and played soccer and basketball - I sat down and watched from the sideline. I'm absolutely exhausted. Tonight was our last night with the news crew. They've been with us since day 1 and although they've mainly stayed out of the way, I feel like I can breath normally.



I'm a little sad thinking about tomorrow. It's our last day with Abe-san. Here's to hoping I don't cry...

10:04 Thursday, June 23
Today was quite a day. We felt 2 earthquakes (aftershocks - whatever) and the second one was a little unsettling. We were all in the cabin hanging out and suddenly everything started to move. It only lasted about a minute but I'd say about 5 million thoughts ran through my head at that moment. All is well now. Let's hope that's the last one.

We said good-bye to Abe-san this afternoon. I will never forget him. I feel really good about the work we accomplished. I feel like he can move forward and we've set him up for success. What a great man. Thank you Jason Ford for introducing him to us.
Before:

After:

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After:


After Abe-san's we went on a drive up through Ishinomaki to Onagawa. These 2 areas were absolutely destroyed. Every building or house we drove by in Ishinomaki was damaged. Every direction you turned there was debris scattered, houses were mangled, doors and walls were missing from buildings - it was havoc. I could not believe my eyes. Onagawa was even worse. It's a little fishing village that has literally been washed away. What is even more scary is that this is just one area that the tsunami struck - this type of damage goes on for hundreds of miles. How will this ever be cleaned up?





Friday, June 24
I saw my first shelter today. I briefly glanced through a window that we were walking by and as quickly as my eyes looked up I immediately looked down and kept walking. I almost froze in shock but I wanted to be as considerate as possible - this is someone's home. I've watched the news, I've seen the newspapers, I've looked online but seeing this is person made my heart sink. This may be the most vivid image in my head. There were literally cardboard boxes, that stand about waist high, separating the spaces for each family. I understand that it is a blessing to have a roof over your head, to have food to eat and clean water to drink. I also understand that in some parts of the world people live like this their entire lives. The difference here was that these people all had homes, lived in a functioning village or town, had a workplace to go to but it was all torn away by this tsunami. The image that I saw made me realize that all affection, privacy and their previous lives had disappeared. There are newly weds, elderly, teenagers, babies - every age is living in that gymnasium. I couldn't help but think - what if that was my life? What if I were living there? It was motivation to work even harder today.

...My journal abruptly stops there. The last day we signed up to volunteer through the city. We ended up working in a temporary housing complex. This was an area that could house up to 140 families. Our job was to carry in futons, towels, sheets and blankets for 67 homes. Those were the final tasks to finish before 67 keys were handed over to 67 families that would be able to move out of the shelter that they've been living in for more than 3 months.

It felt incredible to help and I'm so proud of the crew of students we had with us. They were awesome! I hope to go back.

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