As you watch the news coverage of Japan, do you wonder how you'd cope if this happened to you? Do you believe the magnitude of loss hasn't even hit yet and that for every statistic reported (as of today: 9,000 dead; 13,000 still missing), there are an exponential number of untold statistics?
Things that cannot be counted.
Because for every person who lives/has lived/has loved ones in Japan, there is now a forever changed life. Broken hearts and hungry tummies. Lost histories, wiped out by a memory that will not silence for a long time.
It makes me want to do something. And I'm lucky, because I can.
I'm fortunate that one of my closest friends is Japanese. I met Rika Morioka years ago while working at a Japanese Travel Agency in Seattle. Both of us wanted more education. We entered the University of Washington at about the same time. A few years later we happily walked together at graduation. I, with my accounting degree and young daughter, went to work. But Rika went on to get her PhD in Sociology at UCSD. During her journey she lived in China and Burma/Myanmar. She also returned to Japan many times to visit her mother and eventually nurse her as she was dying from Pancreatic Cancer.
During her stay in Myanmar she worked for the United Nations on Drugs & Crimes, Save the Children and the World Food Program. Currently Rika lives with my cousins in Baltimore.
Yesterday, she sent me this letter. I want to pass it on to all my friends and family who may be interested in helping directly.
Rika has the opportunity to go to Japan and work with Unicef, but she needs help getting there. She already has the skills:
- Native Japanese speaker
- A full understanding of the culture
- Experience helping people in crisis situations (Rika was in Myanmar when the cyclone hit in 2008 and worked with the World Food Program).
Rika possesses another asset which is crucial to the task at hand: follow-thru and commitment. I know this to be true. She has been a friend for many years, through different phases of our lives. Please read her letter:
Dear friends,
On March 11th, northern Japan was hit by the fifth-largest recorded earthquake in human history, followed by 30 feet tsunamis. Though I was immediately informed about the earthquake, I didn’t really realize the scale of the disaster. After all, Japan is prone to earthquakes – not a big deal, I thought. I didn’t even call my family. It was only when I saw the horrifying images of water sweeping cars and houses like toys in the middle of cities, I began to realize that this was something extraordinary. Since then, I have been glued to the upstream live TV that reported not only the plight of the people, but the impending crisis of the nuclear plant.
For seven days, I kept contacting organizations both in Japan and the US, wanting to do something, anything that I might be able to do. I contacted local organizations in Japan, international NGOs already in Japan, US based NGOs, faith-based NGOs, I even contacted Lutheran World Relief asking if I can be of help. All of them told me “no” because they were not ready to accept volunteers or sending people to Japan. I almost gave up.
Then, just a few days ago, I received email from an acquaintance from UNICEF asking if I was willing to fly to Tokyo and help them with their relief efforts, engaging in monitoring and research. This was a perfect job for me as I have worked for emergency relief efforts by UN in Burma/Myanmar when the country was hit by a cyclone & tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people. So I said yes. But in reality, I had a problem. I didn’t know anyone in Tokyo, and there was no place I could stay. Tokyo is crowded, hotels are too expensive, and right now it is chaotic due to lack of fuel, electricity and goods… So again, I kept sending email to anyone I could think of. And again, someone responded! I found a woman who is willing to give me some space for my sleeping bag in the middle of Tokyo for free!
I am making a progress. I have an agency to volunteer with. I have a place to stay. All I need to do is to buy tickets to Japan… Then, it dawned on me… that I have to pay for air tickets, food, and local transportation. I need financial help.
So, I am writing this email asking for help of friends. Would you help me help people in Japan? If you have been thinking of supporting the earthquake relief, this might be one way to do it. Any amount is helpful as I am building on my small savings. Please respond to this email if you can. I could come to see you if you live in the area, and tell you more about it if you like. My number is 410-350-1349 if you prefer calling me. If you want to send a check, my address is 14206 Sawmill Ct, Phoenix, MD 21131.
I appreciate any help you can give me, including your prayers.
Thank you for reading my long story : )
-Rika
FYI: Rika is not a registered Non Profit. She cannot give you a tax receipt for your donation. But
I vouch for her that any money you donate will go to making a difference to a life in Japan. This is her mission and she does not take it lightly. She will not squander any donations.
Please help if you can. The smallest amounts add up!!!
(The crisis is not over, even when our media moves on to something else).
