Dispatch March 31, April 1

Ooops forgot to mention HANDS unofficial dispatch 3/31 and 4/1. Will split gas money between participants contact me to register!

Habitat for Humanity Japan (日本語 version）

Sorry about the sudden change to Japanese, I needed a place to tell volunteer friends about my experience with Habitat for Humanity Japan. Will write English entry about my experience very soon, with much better grammar and probably in more detail than in Japanese.



アメリカではHabitat for Humanityが有名。困っている人のために家を建てるNPO。ボランティアが建築を手伝うため安く建てることが出来る。アメリカで参加したことないが、「誰でもボランティア出来る、家を建てるNPO」という印象を持っている。
ということで、Habitat for Humanity Japanが存在することに気付いたら、しかも、宮城県でボランティアを受付していると知ったら，家を建てる仕事ではないか？　岩手県にも来てくれないか？　とわくわくして，参加することにした。

Habitat for Humanity JapanのHPを見ると海外建築ボランティアは簡単に見つけるがなかなか国内のボランティア募集は見当たらなかった。やっと、活動紹介ー＞国内ー＞ページの下にあった記事のリストに募集報告を見つけた。今は３月の受付が終了になったためリンクがもうなくなったみたい。４月の始まりにまた現れるかもしれない。

ボランティアが参加出来る復興支援活動は、家の解体、泥だし、そしてコミュニティーセンターの建築も書いてあった気がする。リーダのはなさんに聞くと、７０％が解体だが今のところ何パーセントで何をやっているかは難しい質問。大工のJoeさんによると、宮城県のボランティア派遣は先月に始まったばかりで、プログラムが始まる時にいつも出る問題はどう解決するか、これから何をするかはまだ検討中らしい。例えば、今のところSamaritan's PurseというNPOと組んで活動しているが、私の参加した日が日曜日だったため皆協会に行ったらしい。プログラムが成長するにつれてHabitatの活動がSamaritan's Purseから独立していくかもしれない。

申し込みはちょっと厄介だった。申込書を記入してメールで送ってから同意書を印刷してサインして、身分証明書のコーピと共にHabitat for Humanity Japan HQ (東京）に郵送する。また参加する時同じ手続きをしないとだめか分からない。

ボランティアは多賀城のボランティアベースに宿泊出来る。１日の参加費は１０００円で、宿泊、１日に３食（！！）も提供してくれる。朝ご飯は台所でトースト、シリアル、などなどが揃えて、ランチはコンビニによって好きな弁当がリーダに買ってもらう。晩ご飯は夜皆で作る。
３食まではちょっとビックリでした。そんなにお金があったら岩手県にも来て下さい、大工さんに少し給料をあげて下さい、みたいなww

大工さんというと、もちろん日本人のおじさんに決まっていると思ったが、「大工のJoeさん」が話に出たら何とアメリカ人だと分かった。しかも現場のリーダだった。初めての外国人リーダ！　日本人のリーダがどうやって説明を英語でしたらいいじゃなくて、今回はアメリカ人のリーダが日本人のボランティアにどうやって説明すればいいかと逆の問題になっていた！

Joeさんはアメリカ人の大工さんでHabitat for Humanityのベテラン指導員。なんだか自分のおじさんみたいない人だなと会った時に思った。おじさんの雰囲気？オーラが強すぎて、実家から１０分のMount Angelが出身ではないか？と本気で思ったほど私が育ってきた環境に近い人だった。実はIowa州からだが、親戚が昔オレゴン州に住んでいたみたい。

Joeさんが宮城県で指導する緊急募集メールを見たら、資格と経験の条件はぴったりと自分のに合ってて、奥さんに「行ってきます」と言って，日本に出発。
日本は初めてかどうか聞いていないが、Joeさんは日本語があまり喋れない。英語が分からないボランティアにやってほしい作業をジェスチャーで見せるか、英語がぺらぺらなリーダのはなさんに通訳してもらう。
合計５ヶ月ぐらい宮城県にいる。その後、プログラムが続くかどうかは、また指導できる大工さんが参加するかの問題です。指導員は完全なボランティア給料が出ないため難しいかもしれないとJoeが言った。

作業は女川というところだった。多賀城から１時間半ぐらいだったので、北上から派遣する時とちょうど同じ長さ。が、いつもと違って、その１時間半見ている景色が今の石巻の様子。そして、
松島！！　松島がめっちゃ奇麗！！　そこに泊まりたい！　絶対に戻る！
松島は有名でも先週末まで聞いたことなかった。ぼーっと外を見ていたら松が一杯の小さい島が広ーい湖の上に浮いてるのを見て「！！　何この景色？　どこ？」ととてもビックリ。

女川に着いたら、リーダのJoeとはなさん、インターンの一人、ボランティア６人と作業を始めた。壁、天井、床はがし、泥だし。その日はプラスタボードの壁と天井を落として、壁のネギを全部とって、床はがしをし始めるところだった。
最初は喜んで、壁を壊してたが、Joeさんがやってきて、バールを私に渡して、使い方を少し教えてくれた後、初めて床をはがした。やっと少しバールの使い方分かっていることにあまりにも盛り上がって、今これを書いていると水曜日か木曜日まで筋肉痛だと思う。
今までボランティアでは「男性がああします、女性がこうします」という時があって、同意しなくても日本の文化でしょうがないと思った。でも好きでもない習慣の一つです。普段ボランティアしていると初心者の日本人男性ボランティアに自分がスコープの使い方が分かるとか疑われたりするけど、Joeさんが初めて会った女性の私にやってきてバールを渡してくれた。「君もバールだぜ」みたいに。正直とても嬉しかった。私と一緒だった大学生のエビちゃん（女性、実名不明）も機会と指導を与えられたからすっかりと床はがしのやりかたを覚えた。

いつものように依頼されたご家族がお茶をお菓子を下さって，よく聞く話だが解体している家が結局使えない可能性もあると言っていた。政府がまだ出していない町の企画次第。

女川の仮設ビルに「まげねえ鵜住居」みたいに「まげねど、女川」が塗ってあった。

Habitat for Humanity Japanは大船渡で修繕活動を行ってるみたいけど、はなさんによってボランティアの受付をしていないと言う。
http://www.habitatjp.org/jpblog/2012/02/ofunato-1.html
でも、どうかな。家を直す。家を建てる。そういう仕事があったら、手伝っていたいね。
これから，岩手にでも、宮城にでも何の活動をするかを楽しみにしている。

Field Trip: Toono Magokoro Net

What am I doing reviewing Magokoro Net?

Let's get this straight: I love HANDS and I think we are awesome. I'd love for you to participate with us. If you come on the weekends, you can totally participate with us! If it's not on the weekends, you still might be able to participate if we can find you a driver! But depending on the length of time you're here, or the dates, we might not be able to take you.

Therefore, I am reviewing other volunteering opportunities, with way too much detail, to give you the (probably) foreign volunteer enough information to participate comfortably with other NPOs! So, with that explained...Toono Magokoro Net in Iwate!

Stuff you need

You should be checking out the website to make sure you have everything you need, but off the top of my head: you definitely need volunteer insurance, a signed consent form, clothes to get dirty, boots with protective insoles, a warm (warm!) sleeping bag, various usual toiletry items and stuff if you're staying over, plus food. There are shops in the area but no convenience stores nearby opening early, I think, so for the first day you need to buy breakfast and lunch the night before.

Basically, just go to an outdoor store. You can get most of that stuff there. Please don't go unprepared. It is a pain.

The week before.

At first I was planning on staying overnight at Magokoro, but then I noticed that registration for people arriving the day was at 4:30 pm. Since I had work until about 7, I couldn’t make it in time. Therefore, the only other option was staying someplace else and showing up for morning registration at 6:30.

Fortunately, I`d already stayed at a nice little minshuku called Minshuku Rindou a few months before. I don`t know if the owner speaks English, I`d assume not, but he`s a very chill person and the rooms are nice and comfortable. It`s only 3500 yen a night without meals, plus you can take a dip in the onsen bath downstairs anytime you like before about 8 in the morning. Definitely, definitely a very relaxing pre or post volunteer stay.

5:30: Waiting for registration

Up at about 5:30, I took one last dip in the nice Rindou bath and made my way to the center.

See map to the center here

Magokoro Net is at the end of a road that really doesn`t look like something worthwhile is at the end, but don`t worry. If you see this sign (picture) you`re headed in the right direction. Follow the arrow.

Once you get to the nice gate thing, turn left. Don`t enter that central building there that looks like it`s important, just go arrrrounnnd the building until you find a smaller brown structure.

At left, you can see the smoker`s exile area. The actual entrance is in in the middle.

I went inside and waited until 6:30. I was kind of feeling awkward lugging around my bag everywhere, but later I found out I could just put my bag in the women`s dorm room. You can do that too. Just don`t leave your valuables in the bag, just in case.

By the way, before 6:30, I had spotted about two other foreigners, and an older man had come up to me asking if I understood Japanese in English. Not a bad sign for those of you wanting to come with less Japanese.

6:30: Registration

At 6:30, the new volunteers went inside and one of the leaders, who looked pretty busy, attended to us. He checked our volunteer cards, took our waiver forms, and checked a form of ID. Then he passed out an information packet, but unfortunately the packet was in Japanese.

Later, I found out there`s an English equivalent, but it doesn`t look like they pass it out much. I`d recommend either asking for an English one when you get there, or printing out information from the English Magokoro website and bringing it with you. The most important thing was the schedule, which is as follows as of March 22nd:

6:00　Wake up alarm (for those staying in center)

6:30 Registration (for those coming in the morning. Those coming the day before register at 4:30 pm.)

7:20　Gather outside, do warm up exercises, informational speeches from leaders about 8:00 Leave for worksites in buses.

about 10:00　Begin volunteer work.

12:00〜13:00 Lunch (bring your own lunch).

about 15:00 Finish volunteer work.

about 16:00 Return to Toono.

17:30　Meeting for reflecting on day’s activities.

18:00　Free time

22:00　Lights out

Anyway, he then passed out our volunteer name badges, we wrote down the date and our name, and then we had time to explore the place until about 7:20.

I noticed toasters, a microwave, bathrooms, sinks for people to wash their faces, washing machines, and a free wireless password posted below the Japanese flag and above a board full of work requests.

The work requests themselves are interesting. In general, a volunteer can choose between “hard” (physical) work like picking up rubble and “soft” work like doing coffee salons or talking to people. Volunteers can also choose what location to go to. When I went, we could choose between Kamaishi and Ootsuchi.

On top of that, it looks like Magokoro Net itself is taking work requests, and putting out its own work requests. When I went, the following jobs were out: giving foot baths and holding a coffee circle in Rikuzentakata, helping another nonprofit build a kind of shed?, something to do with a Sumo contest, building showers at Magokoro Net (right now only public baths in the area available), and etcetera.

These weren`t all for the same day. Some were one day only, some were ongoing, and some were already filled up with names and nobody else could sign up. Still, the number of choices were intriguing. If you want variety, variety is definitely available here.

7:20: Warm-up and speeches, Crested Kingfisher

Radio Taisou, a traditional Japanese radio program for warming up the body and stretching a little. We warmed up to a recording of the program.

Then the leaders came up and gave some informational speeches. What jobs were going to be done that day, plus a reminder to please bring boots and safety insoles. During the boot speech, I saw a Crested Kingfisher. This is going to have significance to approximately 0% of you, but I do not care. It gets included. I also heard a Blue Rockthrush.

Crested Kingfisher!!! I love you!

Anyway, so then we got into lines. The guy with the microphone first asked all the volunteers who had registered as groups to come aside and line up. Then, he asked the rest of us to split up into two groups, but I didn`t hear what the two groups meant.

This was the most confusing part of the day. We split into two groups, and then each group split into a couple of lines. I found myself in the left side, lined up, but didn`t know what my line meant. When I finally caved and asked somebody, she told me I was in one of the “soft” work lines, as opposed to the “hard” physical labor ones.

NOOOOO I am not ソフト, I am ハード!

I quickly got into the right line.

They then split the hard groups into two more groups, one group going to Kamaishi and another going to Ootsuchi. I chose Ootsuchi, because I`d never been there before. The Ootsuchi leader pointed us to the correct buses, told each of us to pick up one of the nice Magokoro Net vests that we`d wear all day, and onto the buses we went.

I`d say it took about an hour or so to get to Ootsuchi. On the way, we stopped at Kamaishi for a rest stop. The bus driver said that they’d leave as soon as everybody was back, but on a later stop he gave a specific time. I would ask for a time or stick with a group to make sure you’re not late back to the bus.

10:00: Arrive in Ootsuchi and start work

So: arrived in Ootsuchi. I was surprised to see that most of the buildings had been reduced to foundations in the area we were working. One of the leaders explained that, unlike the cities I was used to working in, Ootsuchi had burned. The area had still needed a lot of cleanup, but the houses had started as mostly just burnt frames of buildings.

Leader split us up into to smaller teams and gave each team a pretty arbitrary leader. The guy who was my group’s leader, for example, had no experience. This was his first day. Another guy in our group who was really tan and kind of anti-social seeming was Mr. Veteran San, who had worked on the same site the day before. You might wonder, “why did the site leader make the inexperienced guy the leader?” but I think it’s just because he didn’t have enough time. The guy was in charge of a LOT of people.

So the usual: we gathered tools, walked over to the work site, and began cleaning rubble from the foundation of a building. It was usual volunteer work, and the usual tips apply.

Don’t be afraid of using whatever tools you want, you don’t need anybody’s permission. Just don’t leave them there on the ground in a weird spot so somebody can trip on them, or where you could lose them. If you don’t know what to do, ask somebody who looks like they know what they’re doing or look at what other people around you are doing.

If they say there’s a break, you take a break.

12-1: Lunch

We had lunch outside or in the buses, whichever people preferred. Only, don’t tromp inside those buses with your boots on. The site leader told us to change into our regular shoes so the bus wouldn’t get dirty.

I’d brought some really cheesy store-bought peanut butter sandwiches, but there had been an opportunity to order okonomiyaki in the morning, so I had a half okonomiyaki and the sandwiches to boot. There’ll probably be an opportunity to get extra food in the area and help the economy, but I wouldn’t bank on it.

1-3: More volunteering

More of the same. We switched to another foundation with more rubble in it and began cleaning.

The site leader did come to us during one of the breaks and tell us about what had happened to the area. He said that a lot of people had died in this particular neighborhood, but since it was such a small area he hadn’t known until he talked to a nearby store owner. He recommended talking to the store owner if we had a chance. The jobs we were doing, he added later, could only be done by hand. Heavy machinery had come in to take care of the big chunks of buildings, but completely cleaning the area required human volunteers.

He gave longer speeches than I was used to hearing during volunteering, but it was all important information that the volunteers would bring back to their communities. Most folks were from Tokyo, which seems really disconnected from Tohoku’s situation nowadays. This was Magokoro Net’s opportunity to educate about what had gone on in the area.

So the usual wrap-up: everyone is like “It’s time to finish!” and of course you don’t want to stop. Bring tools to storage area, clean tools, put tools back, and get on bus to return to Toono.

3:00: Start back to Toono

Rest/shopping break at a complex of temporary shops in Ootsuchi. I was really happy with just this bit. A big organization like this has the power to move busloads of people to places where they can spend money to help local communities. 15 minutes or so can make a big difference.

I only bought a cup of coffee, but I saw people buying bags of cookies as souvenirs, doing their grocery shopping, or having a nice post-volunteer yakitori chowdown.

5:30: Post-volunteer meeting and reflection

After we drove back and arrived at about four, there was a rest period where you could mess with your luggage or check your email. Then, everyone cleaned the building a little bit, and gathered in the men’s sleeping area to have a post-volunteer meeting.

I think if you have time, it’s polite to help clean the building and attend the post-volunteer meeting, but if you need to catch a train, it’s OK to leave after you arrive at Magokoro Net. They had interested things to say at the meeting, but most of it was relevant for people who were going to continue volunteering the next day.

Overall impression:

Of course, I love HANDS and I prefer working with them, but I still had a really positive experience participating with Magokoro Net. You might not get to know staff members very well, as they all seemed really busy, but riding the bus and going to worksites offers a lot of opportunity to get to know different people. I’d imagine you’d become even better friends with folks if you stayed the night and participated for a longer time.

The variety of activities offered were also a big plus. This was the first time I could choose whether I wanted to volunteer physically or not and what places I wanted to go to.

The work that Magokoro Net does, at least the physical work I was doing, was for Ootsuchi Volunteer Center. The volunteer centers are run by the local welfare councils, which work by taking work requests from people in the region and then matching groups of volunteers with those requests.

So you can at least be sure that the work you are doing has been requested by someone from the area and is therefore important.

Possible downsides:

Yeah, it’s larger, it can get a little crowded, but I thought it was kind of fun that way. There are plenty of hotels around if you find you absolutely can’t stand it.

The room people sleep can get cold at night, especially because they turn the stove off later at night, so bring a good sleeping bag and dress warm. This will probably become less of an issue in the spring…

There are speeches, but as I said before, it’s mostly Magokoro Net educating people about the region and situation. I learned a lot myself.

I heard one report that a volunteer wasn’t satisfied with the kind of work they did with Magokoro Net, but I think that is less a problem with the organization itself than the participant’s expectations about volunteering and lack of flexibility. If the work you do really isn’t a good fit, at least Magokoro Net has opportunities for things that can be more fulfilling.

Dispatch March 24, 25

We're going to Kamaishi volunteer center March 24, 25. Meeting at Kitakami station at 7:00, a little earlier at official parking lot if you're coming by car. Send our application form to thomasanna85@gmail.com to register. Don't forget to get volunteer insurance ASAP if you can (if not, can get insurance with exact change brought to volunteer center).

Dispatch 3/16, 17, 18

We're going to Kamaishi volunteer center March 16, 17, 18. Send our application form to thomasanna85@gmail.com to register. Don't forget to get volunteer insurance ASAP if you can (if not, can get insurance with exact change brought to volunteer center).

Anniversary

I suppose I should have commented on the anniversary of March 11th here, but I wanted to pass the day quietly and remember.

The people who died a year ago, and the survivors they left behind, are in my thoughts.

Important announcement about HANDS

Hi everybody,

I’ve received word that HANDS is going to stop volunteer dispatch on March 10th , 2012 until further notice. The reasons for this are both financial, as well as the changing roles volunteering may take.

This has been saddening news for me, but it’s not nearly as bad as it may seem at first.

First, HANDS is not ending.

The organization itself is finding a niche or niche(s) to better serve the coast. I will provide more information about that and volunteer opportunities when it comes out.

The regulars that go to the volunteer centers from Kitakami every weekend are basically going to dispatch ourselves. We’re going to carpool and give the drivers gas money, probably about 500 yen, which is the cost of a bowl of ramen or a beer. Not bad. You can come too! I will provide dates and information on when we’re going here.

Additionally, if you want to go to Kamaishi or Rikuzentakata volunteer center and volunteer by yourself, HANDS is still helping people register through the volunteer centers. Just give me an email at thomasanna85@gmail.com about when you’d like to go and I’ll pass it on.

IMPORTANT: Please note that everyone’s volunteer insurance should expire on March 31st! When you volunteer after April 1st, please sign up for volunteer insurance at your local social welfare council (社会福祉協議会). The type of insurance is 天災Ａタイプ, which costs 490 yen. If you need any help finding your local social welfare council or signing up, please let me know and I’ll do what I can.

Last, if you want to volunteer and would like to work with a nonprofit that can dispatch you, (for example, if you don't have a car or can’t take the train, or if you’d like a nonprofit that will give you a place to sleep for free during volunteering) I am going to introduce other local nonprofits that are dispatching volunteers daily on Facebook and on the English (unofficial) HANDS blog.

In short, it’s change, but it’s not necessarily bad change. HANDS is still HANDS. Friends are still friends. Volunteering is still necessary. Kato-san should be harrassed, and we should eat ice cream in Toono.

Volunteer 3/1

Today we went to Rikuzentakata and made signs out of bamboo posts. First, you'd polish the bamboo post and then you'd write "WARNING: TSUNAMI COMES TO HERE" in Japanese, in sharpie. They're going to be set up in the area to mark how far a tsunami is supposed to come.

After we finished work for the day, one of the local older men brought us some newspaper articles and maps and a computer, and sat us down. He wanted to show us exactly what had happened during the tsunami and what it was like--how it was different from a regular flood. How they had had no electricity and water and couldn't communicate via telephone. How they lined up for satellite telephones and got three minutes each to make a call. How they had no food coming in, in the beginning, but they went to get food from the remaining houses and somehow got by. How they never expected a tsunami, or a tsunami this big. How the town had been washed away. He showed us videos as well.

I remember one other time this has happened in Rikuzentakata. After you volunteer, a person from the community sits you down and tells you exactly what happened to the city. They ask you to go home and tell your friends and your family. If you don't remember the city, you see a wasteland.

I'm sure some people wonder why people are bothering to try and rebuild Rikuzentakata at all, because it seems hopeless, or because of an aging population, or because the industries were never doing well there anyway, or some other reason.
The reason Rikuzentakata deserves to be rebuilt is because it is a city. It is a city that has residents who know and care about it and who live there even now. It's going to change a lot. Rikuzentakata in the future may be smaller, or in a different location, with a different feel, different goals, but it deserves to exist just as much as your hometown deserves to exist, or mine.

Rikuzentakata is blanketed in snow. As our car crept along through the sudden patch of mist, I could see shadowy groups of excavators working through mounds of rubble. On the right, pillars of a bridge stood alone, with no bridge to support. Further on, on the left, a building stood half-wrecked. The landscape is peppered with the occasional mound of rubble and nonsensical ex-buildings, ex-bridges, ex-structures. The rest is foundations, and mud.

As long as it's a city but with nothing there, as long as it only consists of nightmarish heavy machines crawling through piles like some sick post-apocalyptic world, it is unbearable to see and it is unacceptable to ignore. It has to become a city again. It has to become a place that people can live in again. That's what I feel every time I see this place.

We can't give up.