By Andy Anderson | Co-Chair
Taylor’s father, brother and sister traveled to Ishinomaki for the 15th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.
TAMF sponsored a Shishimai (lion dance) performance and Memorial Concert in memory of Taylor and all loved ones lost on March 11, 2011 on Saturday, March 7th. Many joined to first view the performance of Ishinomaki Shishimai by junior high students at the beautiful Watanoha Rainbow Theater recently built and designed by Shinichi Endo at the site of the Endos’ previous home. That was followed by a Concert co-hosted with "Reconstruction Center through the Power of Music – Tohoku” at The Watanoha Community Center by Fukko Ongaku-no- Chikara (piano, flute, and clarinet). They performed classical arrangements that Taylor played on the piano growing up.
That evening TAMF hosted a dinner at the Ishinomaki Grand Hotel with about 30 people who have been involved with TAMF activities. It was a great opportunity to show our gratitude to those who have contributed to the recovery of the Ishinomaki community.
On the following day, the Anderson family and others visited the Taylor Anderson memorial monument at the Ishinomaki Minamihama Tsunami Reconstruction Memorial Park to remember Taylor, who had aimed to serve as a bridge between Japan and the United States. This article appeared in the Miyagi edition of the Asahi Shimbun on March 8; the newspaper photos show scenes from the concert and TAMF members visiting the Taylor monument.
We met with Ambassador Glass at the Tokyo US Embassy to update the Ambassador and his staff on our activities in Ishinomaki, present the TAMF 15 year activity update, and present the new Junior High English Text book with a disaster preparedness lesson featuring Taylor. As part of America 250 the US Embassy will be presenting disaster preparedness kits to schools throughout Japan which will include the text book lesson.
The Anderson’s visited with students at three schools which have Taylor Bunko’s on the 10th and enjoyed reading with the students and learning more about how they use their libraries. March 11th brought the ceremony with balloons released for each life lost and luminaries that night for each life lost. The next day we visited Okaido Elementary School with TAMF adviser Naomi Chiba. We visited with the same students that we met three years earlier when we dedicated their bunko. They are now graduating from elementary school and they sang their beautiful graduation song for us.
On May 3rd, a reconstruction event was held at Ishinomaki Minamihama Tsunami Memorial Park, panels showcasing TAMF's 15 years of progress were displayed, and TAMF advisor Shinichi Endo held a workshop making accessories from driftwood carried by the tsunami.
Thank you for your support which helps us continue programs like these to help Ishinomaki families, schools and students affected by the disaster to continue to recover, learn and expand their horizons! Please follow us on Facebook/Tamfjp
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