Kyle spent that last 8 days in Japan helping with relief work. They were there through the typhoon that went all the way up the Japanese coast, causing damage to already hard hit areas. Here are some pictures and his words.
The group sorting through and organizing the tons of donations.
Spending time with children who lost everything.
Kyle was always hungry while in Japan...this was his lunch almost every day. I should have packed a jar of peanut butter for him!
Helping a local hotel get back on it's feet.
Kyle with his 5 roommates! All sleeping on the floor in a row. Kyle was glad he packed earplugs.
This if from Day three of his trip:
Hello loved ones, today started off with a bang, literally, as I was
awakened at 6am on the dot with a 4.8 magnitude earthquake. The magnitude
was weaker than Monday but the intensity greater as the epicenter was about 30 miles offshore from where we are working. My Japanese colleagues tell methat these are the continued aftershocks from the March 11 earthquake.Scientists predict that these will continue for some time into the next 2-3years.We awoke to go perform debris removal at 730am, however, were informed bythe organization, Project Yui, that we could not perform outdoor work todaydue to the approaching Typhoon Roke. In addition, the local children wouldnot be coming to the activity center due to the weather. So, we were directed back to the donation center to continue sorting and organizingdonations from all over the world. We worked for a couple of hours, weretold to go to lunch and then leave for the safety of the hotel as the localgovernment suspended all relief work due to the typhoon. So, we went to a fantastic fresh seafood market that would cut fresh tuna sashimi andwhatever you wanted on the spot. It was very nice, Tim and Clave would haveloved it! Afterwards, we loaded the bus and went back to the hotel inMatsushima. One of my roommates and I, Ryoji Kaneda, took naps while theother roommates and team members plaid cards or went to the "osen" theJapanese word for public bath or hot springs.The typhoon continues to strengthen and much rain has fallen. A serious risk is flooding as the earth dropped approximately 4 feet after theearthquake so the smallest flooding is felt immensely. We are not sure whatwill happen overnight and if we will even be able to reach Ishinomaki tomorrow. We hope to get out and do a lot of relief work.Please continue to pray for the people of Japan as they deal with this latest challenge and all people all over the world faced with disasters.
The bridge in this picture is over 100 feet high, waves during the tsunami were above this bridge.
This sign is thanking all the people who have come to help Japan.
A tired crew make their way back to the hotel.
Where do you even begin?
Day 5 of the relief work:
The rains have finally subsided as Typhoon Roke continues its northerly
track into the Pacific Ocean. Today we were awarded with a beautiful
sunrise and another 4.8 earthquake at 5am. We checked out of the Matsushima
Taikanso hotel at 7am and moved down the road to the Matsushima Century
hotel. From there, we headed back into the most devastated part of
Ishinomaki. There is massive flooding in the streets due to the typhoon but
the roads were passable. I cannot thank and praise our bus driver enough
for his professionalism and knowledge in getting us through some hairy
situations. We continued onward and went back to the island where we worked
earlier in the week and a small group of 6-7 went back to the distribution
center and to visit the children. We made it to Osheki town, which is a
small fishing village decimated by the tsunami. The only building not
severely damaged is being used as the outpost center for volunteers. The
village is a traditional fishing and primarily whaling village. We went to
a fishery on the water that was severely damaged and looked to have had a
landslide from the typhoon push much dirt and debris onto the grounds. We
spent all day removing mud, rocks, and strewed debris including sections of
asphalt from the disjointed road due to the earthquake. The owner of the
fishery was very touched and happy for us to help. We were all happy to
finally be outdoors and get sweaty and muddy trying to make a difference.
The camaraderie amongst the group has been really strong and that was no
different today. Today was an incredibly beautiful day, working along the
coast. I even saw a very large kite and or hawk flying above us. We
finished up and loaded the bus for the nearly 2.5 hour drive back to
Matsushima. We stopped back at the volunteer depot in Osheki to say goodbye
and good luck to our new-found friends. We are on the bus now back to the
hotel for a well deserved shower, dinner, and rest. We leave for Tokyo at
830am tomorrow morning.
This week in Matsushima, Ishinomaki, and Osheki has been an eye-opening
experience into human suffering and destruction beyond one's imagination.
The Japanese people are resilient and will pull through this. The work will
last 5-10 years before towns and homes will be considered normal again. The
meaning for normal for many Japanese will be something new and not
experienced previously. I'm very happy to have met so many like-minded
people this week and to have started many new friendships with people from
Hong Kong. I'm very fortunate to work for a company that allows us to take
time away from work to go do such a good thing.
track into the Pacific Ocean. Today we were awarded with a beautiful
sunrise and another 4.8 earthquake at 5am. We checked out of the Matsushima
Taikanso hotel at 7am and moved down the road to the Matsushima Century
hotel. From there, we headed back into the most devastated part of
Ishinomaki. There is massive flooding in the streets due to the typhoon but
the roads were passable. I cannot thank and praise our bus driver enough
for his professionalism and knowledge in getting us through some hairy
situations. We continued onward and went back to the island where we worked
earlier in the week and a small group of 6-7 went back to the distribution
center and to visit the children. We made it to Osheki town, which is a
small fishing village decimated by the tsunami. The only building not
severely damaged is being used as the outpost center for volunteers. The
village is a traditional fishing and primarily whaling village. We went to
a fishery on the water that was severely damaged and looked to have had a
landslide from the typhoon push much dirt and debris onto the grounds. We
spent all day removing mud, rocks, and strewed debris including sections of
asphalt from the disjointed road due to the earthquake. The owner of the
fishery was very touched and happy for us to help. We were all happy to
finally be outdoors and get sweaty and muddy trying to make a difference.
The camaraderie amongst the group has been really strong and that was no
different today. Today was an incredibly beautiful day, working along the
coast. I even saw a very large kite and or hawk flying above us. We
finished up and loaded the bus for the nearly 2.5 hour drive back to
Matsushima. We stopped back at the volunteer depot in Osheki to say goodbye
and good luck to our new-found friends. We are on the bus now back to the
hotel for a well deserved shower, dinner, and rest. We leave for Tokyo at
830am tomorrow morning.
This week in Matsushima, Ishinomaki, and Osheki has been an eye-opening
experience into human suffering and destruction beyond one's imagination.
The Japanese people are resilient and will pull through this. The work will
last 5-10 years before towns and homes will be considered normal again. The
meaning for normal for many Japanese will be something new and not
experienced previously. I'm very happy to have met so many like-minded
people this week and to have started many new friendships with people from
Hong Kong. I'm very fortunate to work for a company that allows us to take
time away from work to go do such a good thing.
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