Will you support and help quickly “the Forest Longs for the Sea” Activity?
Will you support and help us in the difficult situation?
Japanese
April,6, 2011
Hatakeyama Shigeatsu
We are extremely grateful for your understanding, approval and assistance to our “the Forest Longs for the Sea” activity.
We are fishermen, specializing in oyster and scallop cultivation in Kesennuma Bay, Miyagi Prefecture, in the eastern Japan. We organized the Society to Protect the Forests for Oysters, and it had conducted the above-mentioned activity. The purpose of our activity is growing forests and promoting environment education for people, and we have tried our best for them over twenty-three years.
Last March 11th, however, both our oyster farms and everything needed for our activity have unfortunately been wiped out by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. The disaster did extensively very ruinous damage centered on Tohoku and Kanto areas in eastern Japan.
Sanriku coastal region which we live in was also experienced unimaginable damage especially by the giant tsunami. Even after three months since then, searching activity for missing persons still have been continued, and rescue efforts for each devastated area have been put in operation by day and night.
The places for environmental education which were once filled with children’s smile, as well as the roads and quays at our Moune area in Kesennuma City, have been destroyed severely and submerged by unprecedented massive earthquake and great tsunami. Houses of nearly 90 percent around here were disappeared as if they never existed. Mizuyama Oyster Farm, which is the base of our activity, lost the office, work ships, trucks, and everything else of the facilities for cultivating. We are no longer able to fulfill the function as the base of our activity.
Until the disaster we had tried to restore the linkage between “forest, river and sea” and local residents, and to plant and cultivate “trees in the hearts” of children who will assume the natural environment in the future. The catastrophe, however, have made these our activity stand at a crossroad whether we can continue it further or not.
Happily, Tanaka Masaru, Honorary Professor of Kyoto University, have founded “the Association for Immediate Supporting the Forest Longs for the Sea,” and have begun collecting public monetary donation. He is a father of the hybrid science to address forests, villages, and the sea in Kyoto University and have assisted our activity for years.
We will make the most use of the donation for our continuation of the Forest Longs for the Sea activity, for restoration of Mizuyama Oyster Farm which is the base of our activity and the sites of environment education, and for rebuilding the office of the Society to Protect the Forests for Oysters which also is the central core of our activity.
From here the Rias Seashore, with taking a pledge for reconstruction, we would like call again for your cooperation. Will you please kindly give assistance to us?
Lastly we pray sincerely for the repose of people’s souls who are killed in the earthquake and tsunami, and for the finding early missing people.
April,6, 2011
Hatakeyama ShigeatsuOyster Farmer
Representative of the Society to Protect the Forests for Oysters
Professor, Field Science Education and Research Center, Kyoto University
Will you support and help quickly “the Forest Longs for the Sea” activity and Mr. Hatakeyama Shigeatsu?
Japanese
March,15,2011
Tanaka Masaru :
Representative of the Association for Immediate Supporting the Forest Longs for the Sea Activity
Honorary professor of Kyoto University
Numerous people in Tohoku region face the history’s worst serious situation beyond any expression. I imagine that many people in other regions are feeling deep sorrow for their relatives and friends there.
I have heard that Mr. Hatakeyama Shigeatsu also lost his mother by the great tsunami, who had offered each of his family mental and spiritual sustenance. Besides I have seen he and his family had been ruined most of their cultivating facilities, including all the floats for oysters and scallops, five work ships, office and workshops. Luckily only their home on the rising ground didn’t take in water, so they got started for the first step of restoration there.
Mr. Hatakeyama and his family have performed “the Forest Longs for the Sea” activity with many local people around the Okawa River basin of Kesennuma since 1989. Their activity has been known to a lot of people around Japan as their stories have been carried on the textbooks for elementary schools and junior high schools. And such people have found their activity very important to the point of the national assets in order that Japan blessed with luxuriant forests and productive sea can surely choose which direction to proceed in from now. We also have been able to learn a lot from their activity and encouraged much by it.
Now many people, who are members of the Society to Protect the Forest for Oysters and have conducted this activity, are facing severe situation brought by the 2011 Tohoku massive earthquake and giant tsunami. Each of us can assist them very little. But I think it is absolutely necessary for each of us to cooperate with one another and to make a large contribution in order that they can overcome the difficult situation. To my joy, I received a lot of offers for something that can assist the damaged people and local communities. So I have founded “the Association for Immediate Supporting the Forest Longs for the Sea Activity” to raise funds for them.
Once Mr. Hatakeyama and his associates touched people’s hearts very much and improved the environment of Kesennuma area, and furthermore, they continued to inspire not only their local communities but the whole of the country. I hope they are surely able to rise like a phoenix from the catastrophe and to be the symbol of the hopeful restoration in Kesennuma, Tohoku, and Japan. Therefore I think we should support and help them as much as possible.
If you agree with my purpose, please make an appropriate donation to help them.
< Bank transfer >
Account with bank : The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ,Ltd.
SWIFT CODE/BIC : BOTKJPJT
Branch : Kyoto-Ekimae Branchi
(721-1,Higashi-Shiokoji-cho,Shichijo-Kudaru,Karasuma-Dori,Shimokyo-Ku,Kyoto,
Kyoto-Prefecture,Japan 600-8216)
BENEFICIARY'S ACCOUNT NUMBER : 434-3095280
BENEFICIARY'S NAME : Mori wa Umi no Koibito Kinkyu Shien no kai
Tanaka Masaru
Representative of the Association for Immediate Supporting the Forest Longs for the Sea Activity
Honorary Professor of Kyoto University
