Isles heap help, hospitality on Japanese quake victims

Sheila Kitamura of Makiki Heights said she is humbled by the hopeful spirit of Takanori Hamana, a 25-year-old from Fukushima who is living with her family for a few months as part of a home-stay program for people displaced by the March 11 disasters in northern Japan.

"He’s just a really gentle soul," said Kitamura, director of the Dental Assisting Program at Kapiolani Community College. "He speaks English well so he really took responsibility for the rest of the visitors (from the program) and wanted to make sure everyone was happy."

As families like the Kitamuras take in guests from Japan, and people write checks to the American Red Cross and other relief agencies, officials say Hawaii residents are continuing to reach out to people in Japan’s stricken Tohoku region.

Monetary donations have tapered off since March 11, but there is "still a significant amount of donations coming in," said Edwin Hawkins, president of the Japan-America Society of Hawaii.

Hawkins said JASH has received about $3.5 million in donations.

Hawaii residents have donated another $4.6 million to the Hawaii chapter of the American Red Cross, said Coralie Matayoshi, chief executive officer.

Those agencies in turn send the money to the Japan Red Cross Society.

The umbrella entity for much of the giving is the Aloha for Japan campaign (www.alohaforjapan.com), a coordinated statewide effort started by business and government leaders, including the governor’s office.

"I think the genius of this campaign was getting the major banks involved," Hawkins said. "Two hundred-fifty branches served as collection points and that was convenient for people."

Then there were grass-roots fundraising efforts such as the April 22 concert organized by a Mililani High School 10th-grade English honors class taught by Jeni Nishimura. "A Hand for Japan" at the school’s John Kauinana Stadium raised $4,075.

The Hawaii chapter of the Red Cross said last month that overall aid from the American Red Cross has helped equip more than 36,000 temporary homes in the Japan disaster areas with a washing machine, refrigerator, microwave oven, rice cooker and hot water dispenser. The Red Cross said its goal is to provide 90,000 families with such household appliances.

The Japanese Red Cross has established two psychological support centers and deployed more then 465 counselors, the Hawaii Red Cross chapter said.

As aid flows west to Japan, at least two programs are inviting disaster survivors for home stays and other visits in Hawaii.

The largest such effort, the Aloha Initiative, welcomed its first group of 68 Japanese citizens, including families with children, here on July 4. The program is sponsored by the Japanese Cultural Society of Maui, but invites residents on all islands to open their homes (alohainitiative.com).

Takanori Hamana is one of those Aloha Initiative guests. He worked at a clothing store in Fukushima until it closed because of the threat of radiation exposure, Kitamura said.

Hamana’s family has moved away from Fukushima because of the radiation, Kitamura said. It worries him that periodic earthquakes still rattle Japan. The latest was a magnitude-4.8 temblor Saturday.

Mostly he misses his family, Kitamura said.

His goal is to teach English and he wants to return to Hawaii to attend KCC’s new program for teaching English as a second language. He loves Hawaii and has enjoyed the trip so far.

Kitamura hopes others will volunteer to host Japanese from the affected areas.

"My husband and I share a love for Japan," she said. "As a Christian, I felt very led to help the people who had broken lives. Everything we try to do is to be God’s hands and feet on this earth."

The Kitamura family has five sons, one of whom still lives at home.

"Takanori and my 22-year-old son have enjoyed hanging out together," Kitamura said. They have been to the water park in Kapolei and to the Honolulu Zoo, and will visit the Polynesian Cultural Center later this month.

Hamana will be staying in their home until Sept. 21, World Peace Day.

The Japan-America Society recently launched the "Rainbow for Japan Kids" program to offer respite visits to children from the hardest-hit areas.

The first 20 students arrived July 27 for 10 days of educational and cultural activities in Honolulu. They were from Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures.