Helping Disaster-stricken Kumamoto by Kitchen Cars

The Kamaishi Kitchen Car Team entered Mashiki-cho as the seventh support trip since the Kumamoto Earthquake between April 14^th and 17^th, 2017. And this is the third support trip funded by GlobalGiving. As the first work, the Team had to repair kitchen cars they have left for Kumamoto kitchen car group to use for free. The high cost repairs, using money provided by the GlobalGiving, was an enormous help to Kumamoto Kitchen Car operators, since they do not have enough fund for operating kitchen cars.

One year has passed since the Kumamoto Earthquake, expecting many events to commemorate the disaster. Especially because of many events planned in Mashiki-cho, the Kamaishi Team visited this time where no media picks up as a rural news or no singer or movie star visits to express their supports. The place is the Children’s Life Education Center (Children’s L.E.C.), operated by a Christian organization, which provides secluded environments to children and families, having psychological or emotional problems due to difficulties encountered in their lives. In many cases, they are the victims of domestic violence and unusual family situations. The organization is not providing any treatment based on drug or operation, but it rather helps patients to develop a rhythm in daily living in secluded environments to restore their psychological order. For those who have graduated from the center, the organization also continues to provide counseling to make sure they do not have recurred problems.

The Kamaishi Kitchen Car Team visited there twice in the past, when they still had temporary houses to disaster-stricken people. In the past, staffs there were highly sensitive to prevent their children having any direct contacts with people in the temporary housing. Even though the Team provided attractive foods, such as chocolate-covered bananas, yakisoba (fried noodles), ox tongues, etc., often sold in festivals, the only information the Team received in the past was that children enjoyed a lot. The Team was never allowed to meet children. However, this time, when the Team offered the same food as it did before, for the first time, children came out and showed the Team their beautiful smiling faces. It was an enormous joy for the Team. But hearing about their psychological difficulties due to their past experiences from the center staffs was really a shock. Knowing their problems, their bright smiles really meant the expression of joy from the bottom of the heart. And their unusual smiles gave the Team an enormous reward, very difficult to be described. Children’s return of smiles on their faces, which they lost in their lives, really meant enormous reward to the Team’s support activities. While the Team was providing a chance of enjoying festival food, they were rewarded by the blessing of beautiful and genuine smiles.

One of success stories of rebuilding Kamaishi is “Kamaishi Yoisa” which performs a festival dance with the participation of a large number of Kamaishi residents and street-side watchers, many from the outside of the city. The Yoisa Festival they organizes strengthens people’s spirit for and commitment to rebuilding Kamaishi, creates business opportunities, and stimulates local economy. Appreciating the fortunate outcome of the festival, they thought of supporting disaster-stricken Kumamoto people by creating special goods and providing donations. This time, the Kamaishi Kitchen Car team carried the donation from Kamaishi Yoisa to a group of young people in Mashiki-machi who developed a movement called “Revival Mashiki.” They are expanding and developing diverse activities to stimulate community movements, while they are trying to learn from Tohoku experiences in rebuilding their communities. The Kamaishi Kitchen Car Team, supported by GlobalGiving, is actually conveying valuable lessons from Tohoku and is providing highly timely supports for community rebuilding. The “Revival Mashiki” team is now really challenging the difficult task of community redevelopment, owing to a strong support from the Kamaishi Kitchen Car Team funded by GlobalGiving.

Small support activities became the source of enormous joy and stimulation for community redevelopment activities. The Kamaishi Kitchen Car Team, without any intention of doing so, actually played highly important and indispensable roles for disaster-stricken Kumamoto people.

Links:

• Mashiki-cho, Redevelopment Market (Fukko Ichiba)
• Mashiki-cho, Yasunaga Area