I have heard that my father’s church, just west of Tokyo where there is a Christian retreat/summer camp, has accommodated 70 evacuees including the elderly, children and families from the Fukushima area. The families have settled in well and the children have started new schools in this area, with the help of the collaboration between the church and local government.
I also heard from friends that their local churches are pulling their resources together to transport humanitarian supplies and support to various areas in Tohoku. NPO has been set up through the networks of churches in the area in order to communicate the needs of survivors. They have started to collect supplies and are sorting out logistics, run by volunteers.
My artist friend, Rachel Carvosso, is one of the volunteers setting off today from Tokyo to go to the Iwate area. They are transporting supplies of food/women’s sanitary products/ nappies/clothing etc. And they are also giving a foot bath, massage and hair cut service to the evacuees.
Please check of this site http://hopejapan.info/index.php/ja
