{"id":20835,"date":"2011-07-26T13:10:07","date_gmt":"2011-07-26T17:10:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/?p=20835"},"modified":"2011-07-26T13:47:51","modified_gmt":"2011-07-26T17:47:51","slug":"volunteering-in-tohoku-message-from-a-jet-alum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/2011\/07\/26\/volunteering-in-tohoku-message-from-a-jet-alum\/","title":{"rendered":"Volunteering in Tohoku &#8211; message from a JET alum"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This helpful info was recently posted to the Nagasaki JET yahoogroup by a JET alum for the benefit of current JETs, though it contains a great deal of potentially helpful info and perspective for the JET alum community as well.\u00a0 Have a comment or perspective on volunteering in Tohoku to share?\u00a0 Post to the comments section:<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Hi.  My name is <strong>Andrew Morris<\/strong> and I was an ALT in <strong>Sonogi, Nagasaki<\/strong> prefecture from <strong>07-09<\/strong>.  After that I moved up to Kyoto for two years  and then I just moved back to the U.S..<\/p>\n<p>However, the reason for this  email is that just before I made the fabled journey &#8220;home&#8221; this month, I  was able to free up enough time in my schedule to allow myself to take  two separate volunteer trips up to the <strong>Ishinomaki City<\/strong> area in <strong>Miyagi  Prefecture<\/strong>, which was amongst the hardest hit areas by the tsunami\/quake  in March.  The part where I did most of my work was on the <strong>Oshika  Peninsula<\/strong>, which was actually the very area that was featured in the  great short movie (<strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\/24037794\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/vimeo. com\/24037794<\/a><\/strong>) made by <a href=\"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/?s=flanigan\"><strong>Mark Flanigan<\/strong><\/a> another former JET.<\/p>\n<p>My experiences up there were both just as I thought and completely  different.  I shoveled an insane amount of mud, I hauled debris of all  varieties for days, I crawled through mounds of fly infested ropes  trying to salvage buoys, and I sang drunken karaoke with the local  fisherman when it was all done.  It was an experience I will carry with  me forever and in that short time I met some of the most amazing people I  ever have and made connections that will last a lifetime.  I can assure  you that my experience was not unique.<\/p>\n<p>The reason I have for wanting to tell you about my experiences, though, is  that I want to encourage each and every one of you to seriously  consider going up there to try to do the same.  As I&#8217;m sure you&#8217;re well  aware, summer vacation is nearly here, and you may still be considering  how to spend yours.  I know sitting in the office figuring out new and  interesting ways to stay busy sounds like fun now but\u2026  Who knows, if  you&#8217;re industrious enough, you may even be able to put together a  project out of taking a trip up there help out and convince your school  you should be able to do it without taking nenkyu.  Worth a shot at  least right?  Even if you have to take vacation, it would be much more  meaningful in a lifelong sense then lounging on a beach somewhere  (though no offense if you&#8217;ve already got your tickets to do that).   Trust me, if you do it your stature in the <em>shokuinshitsu<\/em> will increase  100 fold.<\/p>\n<p>To see pictures from my trip please visit \u2013 <a href=\"http:\/\/anmorris.photoblog.com\">anmorris.photoblog.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Further to my encouragement, I&#8217;d like to offer some information about going up  there and hopefully dispel a few myths that I myself was quite worried  about before heading up there.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Transportation myth<\/strong> \u2013 It&#8217;s hard to get there.  Reality = It&#8217;s not.  I  mean, it&#8217;s far but trains and buses to Sendai are in full working  order.  In fact I found it quite cheap.  Turns out there&#8217;s a \u00a56,000  night bus from Kyoto to Sendai.  Or if you have access to a car you  could even make it into an epic road trip.  It would also definitely  benefit you to have personal transport while up there, although not  essential.  From Sendai City there&#8217;s a \u00a5800 highway bus (bus stop 33)  that takes you directly to Senshu University, which is the volunteer  basecamp for Ishinomaki.  Downtown Sendai itself barely looks like it  even suffered any damage really.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong> Lack of volunteer groups myth<\/strong> \u2013 It&#8217;s not easy to join a volunteer group.   Reality = Depends on the group.  Some of the bigger groups like peace  boat, while great, require volunteers to attend an orientation in Tokyo  before going which can be a huge hassle if you&#8217;re not from there.   However, there are a bunch of other smaller groups doing great work in  the area that need all the help they can get.  Contact Robert Mangold  and he can put you in touch with a bunch (idrojapan [at] gmail. com)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Food myth<\/strong> \u2013 It&#8217;s hard to get so you have to bring it all up with you.   Reality = It&#8217;s not hard at all to get it and the people there have more  than they need.  In fact volunteers are fed off of left over food from  the shelters, and sometimes there is even more than they can eat.  Plus  there are supermarkets and convenience stores open in the town you can  use.  Even down on the peninsula the <em>konbini<\/em>&#8216;s are starting to open up.   Water is pretty much the same issue, and drinks of all varieties are  now readily available, which is going to be especially important in the  coming summer months.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Work myth<\/strong> \u2013 It&#8217;s all really hard manual labor.  Reality = That is  available in spades, but so are any number of other jobs.  Some people  help cook food for the shelters.  People go and spend time with the kids  or do performances at the shelters.  Some people give massages or  acupuncture to people who suffer from physical issues or stress  (obviously licensing or some professional experience is highly valued in  such a case).  Some people work cleaning photos found in the rubble for  display so that the owners might find them again.  If you have any sort  of applicable skill or an idea for a project that might be useful in  this sort of situation I&#8217;m sure they&#8217;d love to hear about it.  Heck, you  could probably just go and offer free &#8220;English Conversation&#8221; and they&#8217;d  love it!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Gear myth<\/strong> \u2013 You have to go out and buy tons of gear before you go like  boots, a helmet, gloves, masks, etc. which can cost a lot of \u00a5\u00a5\u00a5.    Reality = Unless you sign up with a volunteer group that requires you to  have these things, or unless you go up with a whole herd of volunteers  then it&#8217;s probably not necessary.  The group I volunteered with had  plenty of that equipment for me and all the other volunteers.   Especially if you aren&#8217;t going to be doing the nitty gritty work, you  won&#8217;t need any of that type of equipment.  However, one thing I would  suggest bringing if you do plan to do debris cleanup is steel insoles  for boots.  There&#8217;re lots of nails and other sharp things all around as  you can imagine so they can really save you a very painful experience.   Also, if you have &#8220;outsized&#8221; feet or hands, etc. it may be good to bring  your own gear.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Sadness myth<\/strong> \u2013 The overwhelming sadness of the situation will leave you  depressed.  Reality = Well, obviously this is entirely an individual  issue, and everyone reacts differently to these situations.  However I  will just say that although the destruction you encounter there is just  entirely unbelievable, and the people you meet there have often been  through absolutely devastating experiences, in general, I found both the  locals and the volunteers to be in incredibly high spirits.  The  positive energy they displayed in taking on this massive project of  putting their lives and communities in order was nothing short of  inspirational.  I dare say that a good portion of the time I was having\u2026   fun (see drunken karaoke above).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong> Some words of caution:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">-All that said, it is a difficult, trying experience and should not be undertaken on a whim.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">-As was pointed out in a previous email from CLAIR, it is extremely  important to think about &#8220;Volunteering Responsibility.&#8221;  It is not a  vacation, and you should do your very best to make sure that you do not  need to be taken care of.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">-Some of the jobs are quite dangerous (although every precaution is  taken) and you should consider which role you can play safely.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Some words of advice:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">-Speaking Japanese is not entirely essential, but it is extremely  beneficial.  This goes in the &#8220;making sure you&#8217;re not a burden&#8221; section.   Try to go up there with someone who can communicate well so you can  receive instructions and know what&#8217;s going on if possible.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">-As you&#8217;re well aware it&#8217;s going to be bloody hot.  They told me it&#8217;s  cooler along the coast than many places thanks to the cool breeze, but  still, it&#8217;s Japan in July\/August\u2026  Be prepared.  That means lots of  fluids, and buckets of sunscreen.<\/p>\n<p>Feel free to contact me with any questions too (anmorris [at] gmail. com).  Good luck with whatever you do and enjoy your remaining time in that wonderful wonderful country!<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Ganbaro Nippon!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This helpful info was recently posted to the Nagasaki JET yahoogroup by a JET alum for the benefit of current JETs, though it contains a great deal of potentially helpful info and perspective for the JET alum community as well.\u00a0 Have a comment or perspective on volunteering in Tohoku to share?\u00a0 Post to the comments [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[378,369,282,368,132],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-earthquake-tsunami","category-japan-local","category-jet-roi","category-traveltourism","category-volunteer"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pkZ7m-5q3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20835","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20835"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20835\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20837,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20835\/revisions\/20837"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}