Via the JETAA USA website:
The Anderson Family, who has done so much to further Taylor’s vision of bridging the US and Japan, participated in a memorial service at Taylor’s alma mater, Randolph Macon College. The memorial was covered by both NHK World and the local CBS news station in Virginia. Ambassador Fujisaki was also in attendance as a speaker for the event.
To see the media coverage click below:
- NHK World: Americans Honor Victim
- CBS Channel 6 News: Local Teacher Remembered One Year After Tsunami
- NHK written coverage (in Japanese)
Additionally, here are some links to coverage gathered by a friend of the Andersons and forwarded by Andy:
- Article on the Randolph-Macon college website about the event.
- March 8, 2012: WCVE-FM (NPR) local NPR correspondent Dan Rosenthal interviewed national NPR correspondent Yuki Noguchi for a preview of the Taylor Anderson/Japan Foundation lecture. You can listen to the interview by clicking anniversary.
- March 13, 2012: The Asahi Shimbun (Japanese newspaper) sent a reporter to the lecture and also covered a pre-lecture news conference held by R-MC. You can read the article by clicking on Asahi Shimbun.
- March 12, 2012: NHK World Japanese Television sent a reporter to campus several times to interview the Andersons (Taylor’s parents) as well as the March 11 lecture. You can watch the story by clicking on NHK. Note: This story is only available for viewing through this weekend.
March 12, 2012: Here is a look at some local coverage:
- Richmond Times-Dispatch: http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2012/mar/12/randolph-macon-program-recalls-student-who-died-ja-ar-1758051/
- WWBT-TV12 (NBC): http://www.nbc12.com/story/17135121/local-family-still-copes-with-daughters-death-after-japan-tsunami
- WTVR-TV6 (CBS): http://wtvr.com/2012/03/11/local-teacher-remembered-one-year-after-japan-tsunami/
- WRIC-TV8 (ABC): http://www.wric.com/story/17139323/randolph-macon-honors-taylor-anderson
- WUSA-TV9 (Washington, DC): http://www.wusa9.com/news/nation-world/article/196158/381/Randolph-Macon-Honors-Va-Teacher-Who-Died-In-Japan
- WSET-TV13 (Lynchburg, VA): http://www.wset.com/story/17139178/randolph-macon-honors-va-teacher-who-died-in-japan
- WCAV-TV19 (Charlottesville, VA): http://www.newsplex.com/news/headlines/Va_College_Honors_Teacher_Who_Died_in_Japan_Disasters_142457475.html
- WHSV-TV3 (Harrisonburg, VA): http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/Randolph-Macon_Honors_Va_Teacher_Who_Died_in_Japan__142361425.html
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Thanks to Lindsay Tsuji for this write-up and thanks to Nadine Bukhman for the photos.
A chilly Toronto’s eve didn’t stop friends and fans of one artistically inclined JET alum from dropping by the Goodfellas Gallery in Toronto to celebrate the launch of his new book Life After the B.O.E. JETAA Toronto’s David Namisato (Aomori-ken CIR, 2002-04) was the cause of some serious hurrah on February 8.
Most JETs are no stranger to David’s comics. Started back in 2005, they chronicle the ins and outs of what life is like as a foreigner on the JET Programme. The enkais, the onsens, the team teaching…it’s all in there. Read More
Former Rikuzentakata JET Sarah Ruddy, a web producer for New York Magazine, was recently by Huffington Post to write an article in connection with the one-year anniversary of the 3/11 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. (On a side note, I noticed that Sarah mentions another JET alum in the article, author/humor writer Will Ferguson who wrote Hitching Rides With Buddha among other books.)
View from where Sarah's desk used to be in the Board of Education in Rikuzentakata
Here’s the article:
After The Tohoku Earthquake: ‘I Gave Up My Family For Dead’
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-ruddy/after-the-tohoku-earthqua_b_1335092.html#s770689
Here’s an excerpt:
My decision to go back was not about whether I should but how soon I could. I was determined to do whatever I could to help. I was often asked if I was afraid of another earthquake and tsunami occurring or how the radiation would effect me. There are plenty of dangers in the world that we can’t predict or prevent. They shouldn’t stop us from experiencing life.
I ended up going last November, seven months after the tsunami hit. I was welcomed by friends and generously offered a place to stay. I heard their stories of that day and the seven months that followed. The improvements made in that time were incredible.
I volunteered in Rikuzentakata and Ofunato, the city immediately north, and returned to my former schools to help out with classes. The people I volunteered with were from all over Japan, including students who were on break, retired couples who had free time and curious people who wondered how anyone could have survived. I spent long hours digging through fields of sediment and debris.
The Fukushima Taiko Drummers meet U.S. Ambassador to Japan, John V. Roos, before they head to D.C. in April.
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JETAA DC members Michelle Spezzacatena (Fukushima-ken, Kawamata-cho, 2002-05) and Darryl Wharton-Rigby (Fukushima-ken, Kawamata-cho, 2005-07) were both teachers in the town of Kawamata in Fukushima Prefecture. Michelle was there from 2002-2005 and overlapped one week with Darryl, who was there from 2005-2007. Thanks to the magic of Facebook they were able to keep in contact throughout the years. After the earthquake and subsequent nuclear disaster, Darryl and Michelle were talking about how they could help their Japanese hometown. The idea of bringing the taiko group to DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival was born out of those discussions. (Editor’s note: In addition to Michelle’s work on this project, she also serves on the JETAA USA Fund Committee and previously served as JETAA DC President.)
In Michelle’s words: ”We brought the idea to the Japan America Society in DC who immediately fell in love with it too. Thanks to the generous financial support of the US Japan council, the project was fully funded. We have been working with Anna Cable (USJC), Ambassador Malott (JASW), JET alum Marc Hitzig (JASW), Shigeko Bork (former Kawamata resident now living in DC) and Masako Mori (Diet member from Fukushima) on the project. Darryl and I are the co-coordinators and have been doing most of the heavy lifting. We are also officially part of the TOMODACHI Initiative.”
Fukushima JET alums Michelle Spezzacatena (2002-05) and Darryl Wharton-Rigby (2005-07)
“The students will be here from April 7-17 and they have a jam packed schedule. We will be doing a homestay program, they will be performing at numerous locations including the National Cherry Blossom Parade/Sakura Matsuri/Kennedy Center, we will be sightseeing and hopefully we’ll be doing a meet and greet with the new Orioles player, Wada-san and a Orioles/Yankees game day performance at Orioles Park. Darryl and I are excited to be with them the entire time they’ll be in the US.”
Michelle adds: ”NHK Japan is also working on a piece on Darryl and I in the context of what JETs are doing to help Japan after the earthquake. They have been following us around to different events and will be for another two weeks. The piece will run on NHK Japan’s News9 broadcase during the first week of April when the anchor is doing the show live from DC. They will also try to do an English version to show on NHK World.”
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Below is a press release about the taiko group’s upcoming performance at the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Michelle Spezzacatena- michellespezzacatena@gmail.com
STUDENT TAIKO GROUP FROM FUKUSHIMA INVITED TO NATIONAL CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL
An update from The MUD Project, an ongoing Tohoku relief effort organized by JET alum Colin Rennie (CIR Yamagata-ken, 2007-10). Click here to see previous updates by Colin on YouTube:
March 13, 2012
March 11, 2012
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“LIVE YOUR DREAM: The Taylor Anderson Story”is a film project by documentarian Regge Life who is currently seeking support via Kickstarter to help fund the full production of the film.
ABOUT THIS PROJECT
This film is a story about Taylor Anderson and all the young people who travel the world trying to make a difference. Taylor was an extraordinary American who dedicated herself to teaching Japanese children, living her dream right up to the events of March 11, 2011. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan was a disaster that no one could have expected. In my 21 years of working on Japan based projects, I had witnessed earthquakes, but never the devastation of a tsunami.
I had just completed REASON TO HOPE, a film about the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, so I understood all of the events related to the aftermath of an earthquake, but what would be the aftermath when an earthquake was followed by a tsunami and in the case of Japan, a possible nuclear disaster.
CLICK HERE to read more on the Kickstarter site and to help support this project
Update 03.13.12: Realized I neglected to mention in the interview The MUD Project, an ongoing Tohoku relief effort organized by JET alum Colin Rennie (CIR Yamagata-ken, 2007-10).
Update 03.12.12: Here’s the interview translated into Japanese
“American View,” a quarterly magazine published by the Press Office of the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, recently interviewed JETwit publisher Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) about the role of JETs and JET alumni in connection with Japan’s recovery efforts following the 3/11 disaster.
American JETs Rally for Japan in Myriad Ways
http://amview.japan.usembassy.gov/e/amview-e20120301-04.html
Here’s an excerpt:
American View: What is unique about disaster relief activities by JET program participants and alumni?
Steven Horowitz: The connection we have to the affected areas and to each other. And the language skills and ability to communicate directly with people in the communities. When you work for the school system, you really get connected to the community. You understand how things work, how kids evolve into adults. You’re part of the community. As a result, JETs are able to identify needs and then reach out to a global community to help fill them in unique ways. I think JETs and JET alumni in some ways were better able to identify needs on the ground than some of the larger, more removed relief organizations, and especially with regard to education-related needs.
問 現役・元ＪＥＴ参加者による復興支援活動にはどのような特徴がありますか。
答 被災地との絆やＪＥＴ参加者同志のつながり、そして地元の人たちと直接意思を疎通できる日本語能力があります。学校制度の中で働けば地域社会と真のつながりができます。物事の仕組みや子どもが大人になっていく過程を理解するようになります。地域社会の一員となるのです。ですからＪＥＴ参加者たちは、地域のニーズを見極めた上で国際社会に働きかけ、独自のやり方でそうしたニーズを満たす支援ができます。現場から遠く離れた大規模な支援団体よりも現役・元ＪＥＴ参加者たちの方が、いろいろな点で現場のニーズ、特に教育関係のニーズに関してより確実に把握できると思います。
*CLICK HERE to read the full interview in English
*CLICK HERE for the Japanese version
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The below interview appeared in PhilanTopic, the Philanthropy News & Digest blog which is part of The Foundation Center. It’s a really terrific explanation of the situation in Japan from a philanthropy/fundraising/non-profit perspective by Jim Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94), Executive Director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA), who has become one of the experts in this field.
March 09, 2012
James Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94)
One Year Later: Rebuilding After the Great Tōhoku Earthquake
James Gannon is executive director of the Japan Center for International Exchange/USA, which works to strengthen U.S.-Japan cooperation across a range of fields. Recently, Laura Cronin, a regular contributor to PhilanTopic, spoke with Gannon about the progress of rebuilding efforts in the quake- and tsunami-affected Tohoku region of the country.
Philanthropy News Digest: The earthquake and tsunami affected a four hundred-mile region along the northeastern coast of Japan — an area roughly comparable to the BosWash corridor in the United States. What are conditions in the region like now, a year later? And how have people in the affected region, and the country at large, been changed as a result of the disaster?
James Gannon: Even now, some communities are still disposing of rubble, while things appear almost normal in other, less-hard-hit areas. Compared to the scenes of utter devastation we saw a year ago, there has been extraordinary progress. But if you spend any time in these communities, you realize the depth of the wounds. More than three hundred thousand people are still without homes, and that is weakening traditional community ties. Many of the jobs in the fishing industry, agriculture, and small business have not returned, resulting in high unemployment and all the social problems it brings.
Meanwhile, women who lost family members, men who are ashamed that they can no longer support their families, and children traumatized by the disaster are grappling with mental health issues. The stoicism of the people in the Tōhoku region is stunning — even by Japanese standards — but most acknowledge that the road to recovery will be long.
On the other hand,
CLICK HERE to read the full interview on the PhilanTopic blog.
Thanks to Jim Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94), Executive Director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA), for sharing his organization’s special report, which notes the grassroot efforts of JETAA USA among others.
“JCIE Special Report: US Giving in Response to Japan’s March 11 Disaster Tops $630 Million”
“A JCIE survey of hundreds of American and Japanese organizations estimates that Americans have donated $630.2 million to aid victims of Japan’s massive March 2011 earthquake. This ranks as the largest US philanthropic outpouring ever for a disaster in another developed nation and the third most generous American charitable response in history for any overseas disaster.”
Click here to read the full the report: http://www.jcie.org/311recovery/usgiving.html
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Here’s another Fukushima update from JET alum Brent Stirling, one of the 20 Tohoku region JET alumni selected by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) to return to their town to both engage in volunteer efforts and also help document and share what’s going on there.
Click here to read other Return To Tohoku updates on JETwit. You can also check the JETAA USA website post (“JET Alums Return to Tohoku”) for additional information.
By Brent Stirling (Fukushima-ken, Fukushima-shi, 2006-10)
It’s been almost a year since the Great East Japan Earthquake and almost six months since I returned to Fukushima and this will be the first thing I have posted about it since my week long adventure into the place I called home for so long.
I have agonized over the writing of this for months now. While in Fukushima, I learned, saw and felt so many new things. The main feeling I came away with after having been there was one of inspiration. The people in Fukushima, foreigners and Japanese, were all so very inspirational. The vigor that they put into the community there and how they defend and care for Fukushima and it’s reputation was nothing short of remarkable.
I’ll be honest, while I did go back to Fukushima on the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ dime, my main motivation for going back wasn’t …..
CLICK HERE to read the full post
JETAA International videos
JETAA Chapters, Return on JET-vestment, Video 
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Here are two videos recently released by JETAA International, and put together by JETAA-I Webmaster Bob Schnyder of JETAA Portland and JETAA-I Secretary Kay Dunkley of JETAA Jamaica.
“What is JETAA International?”
“Because of JET”
A short video by JET alum Owen Rojek:
JET News Roundup 3.6.2012
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By Filmore Ha (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08). Filmore continues to live and work in the Greater Tokyo Area as an FAE and is also webmaster for JETAA Tokyo. He is actively seeking new opportunities in the U.S. or Canada.
- Akita Global Network Newsletter Vol. 5
Akita Prefecture released their latest news letter on 2/27. The AGN itself serves as a bridge to keep foreigners who have associated with Akita Prefecture up to date on the latest developments in the prefecture. The above link will take you two a page with two PDFs, one Eng. and one Jpn. If you prefer to receive the newsletter directly you will also find instructions to do so on this page. - JLGC Newsletter #72
The Japan Local Government Center in NY also released it’s 72nd newsletter last month. Of note are comments from participants on the 2011 Clair Fellowship Exchange Program, and a report about the JETAA International Meeting and their volunteer trip to Rikuzentakata. - Japaninfo Flash
The Consulate of Japan in NY published an issue of it’s Japaninfo Flash newsletter with information on Japan Society events commemorating the 1 year anniversary of the 3.11 Earthquake come up next week. - Doshinsha MBA Program
From Terry Vo, JET Program and MEXT Coordinator in Nashville, Doshinsha University in Kyoto is seeking former JETs to join it’s MBA Program. There are several former JETs on the program already, one is graduating soon, and several more will start in quarter 4 of this year. In addition there are also scholarship opportunities for those interested in the program. For more information, check out the link. - Sake World Newsletter #142
Are you a Sake lover? If so, checkout the Sake World Newsletter and be sure to subscribe. It’s choc full of interesting tidbits about Sake and brewing! - Win a pair of tickets to Japan via ANA
This has made the rounds on the net recently, so you may have already seen it. All Nippon Airways is running a campaign through March 31st where they will award a pair of tickets to Japan by lottery. To register you simply need to fill out a form so go check it out! - Texoma JETAA Trivia Night
The Texas/Oklahoma chapter of JETAA is having their first ever Trivia night at a local Houston pub for anyone in the area who is interested. The event is on Wednesday, March 7th from 7pm to 9pm. For more details check out the link.
JET Paul Yoo, founder of volunteerAKITA, recently shared this update about fundraising for the volunteerAKITA Scholarship Fund which aims to send a boy from one of the orphanages they work with to university (the first boy from the orphanage to ever express interest in going to college):
“Hey everyone! A BIG THANKS for all the support! With all the donations that came in this week we have ￥695,461 left to raise for our scholarship fund. Please help us continue to spread the word and for more information regarding the scholarship fund please check out our website at www.volunteerakita.org or feel free to contact me anytime! (volunteerakita [at] gmail.com).”
Click here to read the previous JETwit post about Paul Yoo and the volunteerAKITA Scholarship Fund.
You may recall last year (02.21.11 to be exact), JETwit revealed the “Best Prefectures” based on how many members each LinkedIn JET Alum prefecture group had. With a little help from JETwit’s friends, we’ve updated the numbers, and they now total 787 total members.
Shimane-ken continues to kick prefectural oshiri in a big way. Not sure what’s holding back JET and JET alums from other prefectures. But all you have to do to join your prefecture LinkedIn group is to click here and find your prefecture. A great way to not only stay connected with your community, but also to provide Return On JET-vestment at the local level. (Click here for more explanation about why this helps “save” JET. And click here for a list of JET alum LinkedIn groups by profession.)
The Top JET LinkedIn Prefecture Groups
(last year’s numbers in parentheses)
1. Shimane - 69 (44)
2. Fukushima JET Alumni - 38 (14)
2. Hokkaido - 38 (16)
4. Fukui JET Alumni - 32 (11)
4. Hyogo JET Alumni - 32 (12)
4. Niigata JET Alumni - 32 (16)
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Overall Ranking of JET Alum LinkedIn Groups by Prefecture
(in alphabetical order; last year’s numbers in parentheses) Read More
