Thursday Morning updates from CRASH Japan, MTW, and Family forum Japan

Update from CRASH Japan – Number One Need is Hope

Using networks of local Japanese church contacts, CRASH Japan teams are getting aid to people and gathering valuable information for future teams.

Assessment teams consisting of CRASH Japan and partnering international organizations have been able to see for themselves the challenge ahead for Japan. “It’s a logistical nightmare up there,” said Joe Wilkey, Executive Director of World Compassion Network (WCN) upon his return. “If I had all the money in the world laying on the table, I couldn’t get the gasoline for the people, it isn’t money.”

Wilkey hailed the crucial role CRASH Japan plays in being the aorta of restoring northern Japan.

Greg Rauen, Operations Manager of WCN, commented that the atmosphere of evacuee shelters is surprisingly respectful with people settling in for a long stay. “I felt like I was walking around in someone’s house,” Rauen said.

Acorn International Ministries Director, Stephen Fisher, shared how shelters are filled with a sense of helplessness. “They sit around waiting. They’re getting food, water, basic things now, but the thing people need most is hope.”

CRASH Japan is currently looking for teams of volunteers from churches or church organizations to come together and offer hope through their help. Teams will be largely involved in clean-up and rebuilding. The needs of communities are varied, and response depends on those needs. CRASH Japan is committed to sending volunteers into safe areas. Though conditions can change daily, safety for teams will always be CRASH Japan’s number one priority.

Wilkey added, “This is a great opportunity… to love the people of Japan through the church. There’s nothing better than churches helping churches.”

MTW Update – Pray For the Children of Japan

A group of believers from a church in Kakegawa has found two schools near Sendai with a total of 600 children who had not received any food since the earthquake!
Perhaps there are other similar situations. Children in situations like these are separated from their parents who may or may not have survived. Pray for those who care for them. And pray for the many other children throughout Japan who may not have lost parents or even experienced the worst of the disaster, but who have been traumatized. Their memories of this experience will be carried with them for the rest of their lives. Most of all, pray that many children – and their parents – will come to know Jesus, who alone can bring His peace to their hearts.

Two Updates from Family forum Japan FB page

The town of Minami Sanriku was devasted by tsunami. The current death toll has almost reached 300. One of the missing is (nee) Miki Endo, who stayed at her post on the town emergency loudspeaker, warning people to flee, until her 3 story building was gutted by the wave. How many more might have lost their lives, but for the courage of this young newly married woman.

Today’s bad news: radiation in Tokyo area vegetables, milk, and water. The good news: possible CRASH distribution centers coming together in Ibaraki, Tochigi, Miyagi, and Iwate. Shipping routes firmed up, and almost ready to receive containers. Also ordered $30,000 worth of Costco goods to be shipped North, and given a 2 ton truck. Thanks to your donations and God’s blessing on CRASH teamwork.

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Previoius updates below

Wednesday AM Updates from MTW Chiba Team members Craig/Ree Colbourne and Sally Dangler; several updates from Family Forum Japan

Tuesday PM Reports from MTW FB page and website

From Craig and Ree Coulbourne:
We were excited to see three non-Christian husbands of church members at Sunday morning worship at Makuhari Church. One said he came to worship because he felt that perhaps God was saying something to Japan and because he wanted to pray for those who are suffering so much from the earthquake and tsunami. That’s exactly the kind of response we are hoping to see. Please pray that God would open the hearts of many Japanese through these difficult circumstances and that it would be more than a passing openness that fades when the crisis has passed.

This report comes from Craig and Ree Coulbourne, members of MTW Chiba Team. They are working in the Makuhari Church, a congregation that was initially started as part of the plan of Park Cities Presbyterian Church in the Dallas area. In 1999, PCPC set out to plant one strategic church in Makuhari New Town, an upscale and rapidly growing suburb of Tokyo. The hard soil of Japan has once again made the task of planting churches difficult and slow. However, Kaihin Makuhari Grace Church has been established and now has a growing attendance.

From Sally Dangler:
Thank you for praying. It’s been an amazing week. At different times we were very concerned about the power plant and the conflicting reports were quite hard to follow. At this time it seems like its safe to be in our area and God is opening up amazing windows for ministry. The people are open in ways that I have never seen before.

On Friday night Kunihiro, one of my non-Christian students, a businessman in his thirties, said after reading a passage in Luke “I think God is using this earthquake to open our eyes to the need for
change in Japan!” May it be so!

All week we have been gathering donations, loading trucks and delivering relief supplies to Iwaki City, Sendai and other hard hit areas. Early Monday morning we sent one truck. That night after learning more clearly of the needs we sent 2 trucks up. On Wednesday 3 trucks went out and on Thursday there were 4! My heart is filled with a lifetime of miraculous memories of how those trucks were provided and filled with supplies and of how God gave safety to the drivers and blessed all involved.

This morning Pastor Dedachi told of the delivery he made on Thursday. As he went into the city of Iwaki he said it looked like a ghost town. Iwaki is only 8 kilometers outside of the area that has been evacuated due to radiation. At first he thought everyone had evacuated but then they saw one person and asked if they needed water. That person sent out a text message and soon a long line had formed with people needing water. Pastor Dedachi was amazed at how they came. As they kept filling the containers that each person brought with water he saw an old woman with 4 buckets in her hands. He was afraid they would run out of water and wanted to tell her that she could only fill one of them because of all the other people in the line, but he didn’t have the heart to tell her that. However, this woman, looking back at the others waiting in line said “only fill one of my buckets half full – the others need water too.” They were able to give water to every single person in line!

As they were closing things up to make the long journey back to Chiba a grandmother with her grandchild came riding up on a bicycle. She lived in the next city over but heard that there was water and quickly came to see. Dedachi told her that they had no more and she began to cry. But from the house they were near a person came out and handed her three bottles of water. He said “Please take these, I received some yesterday too. I’m okay.” Pastor Dedachi said that he has now had a taste of what it must have been like to watch Jesus feed the 5000. Each day the physical needs are changing here but the need for awakening remains strong.

This report comes from Sally Dangler, a trained Special Ed teacher in the US who, after a short term mission’s trip to Japan, signed on as a career missionary. She serves as the Team Coordinator for the Chiba Team.

WED AM Update from Family Forum Japan FB Page Wed AM

M 6.7 Earthquake Report from Sakaemura, Nagano/Niigata Border

The following is from Bob Clift, who lives in Sakaemura, Nagano. It is very informative.

At 3:59am on Sat., March 12, a magnitude 6.7 earthquake with a very shallow focus shook Sakae-mura and a limited area around, with an intensity of 6-plus (on the Japanese intensity scale of 1-7). As a result, the village government issued an evacuation directive (避難指示) for all of Sakae-mura, except the Akiyama district. Shelters were established in 7 locations, housing 120 to 350 people each, for a total of approx. 1600 people. This directive was rescinded at 9am Mon. March 21, and so as of Tue. evening, the number still in shelters has dropped by half to 777. Ever since the earthquake, we have had functioning electricity, telephone, and road systems. And so official and unofficial aid has been able to reach us, including water trucks, etc., to the point where excess food has been thrown away on a daily basis. The shelters have had sufficient heat as well as blankets and sleeping mats.

At this point, the most critical need towards recovery is the restoration of running water, and progress is being made daily. I don’t have the number of houses that are total losses, half loss, or damaged, but it is significant, although not a majority. The major destruction followed a definable swath from north-northeast to south-southwest, on both sides of the Chikuma river, but mostly on the north bank. Although we had no pressing needs for private aid during the days of the evacuation, there may be need for aid in the weeks and months to come as rebuilding gets under way. There are plans to erect temporary housing in town, and several families are in the process of finding public housing in Iiyama, etc. The main road has several cracks and bumps, and is still off limits to trucks and large vehicles. The Iiyama rail line, will probably take years to get back on track.

Tuesday PM update from Family Forum Japan FB page

Nuclear reactors more stable, dead and missing now 28,000, gas and food supplies slightly improved around Tokyo. Still blackouts. Many foreigners have left 🙁 CRASH Japan getting supplies, volunteers, and funds circulating, to meet more needs. Still so much to get done. Thanks to you all for your generosity and prayers.

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Previous updates below

Tuesday Noon Update from MTW Japan Chiba City Team Member Bert Kooi Tuesday Noon

Report on Visit to Iwaki City
I was able to travel north yesterday to Iwaki City, which sustained significant damage in its coastal regions from the March 11 tsunami. It also is near the Fukushima nuclear reactors, but just outside the 20 kilometer evacuation zone. Here are a few thoughts on this experience

Karen Darda, a friend and teammate, asked me to accompany her as a second driver. Our task was to bring three MTW relief work assessors to Iwaki City so they could determine whether there is a need for medical help from American doctors, health professionals, and counselors. We visited two churches, with whom they could potentially partner, as well as three shelters for people who lost their homes to the tsunami. We left at 3:00 a.m., spending the entire day in Iwaki City.

The two churches we visited were both very happy to partner with MTW, to allow their facilities to be used for clinic work and volunteer housing. One church in particular was very encouraging. “Global Mission Outreach” (?) lost their church last year to a fire. About the same time, one of the young men from the church lost his father to a heart attack. The father owned a pachinko parlor (gambling), and the son inherited it. Instead of continuing the family business, he sold the large three-story building to the church for a low price. With this large facility, the church is now a beehive of activity helping victims around the city.

The main floor (worship area) is filled with donated food, clothing, diapers, etc. During our time at the church, several trucks and vans arrived from churches in various parts of Japan, all of them loaded with donated supplies. As these were taken into the “warehouse,” other supplies were being taken to shelters in all parts of the city. The second floor office area was also a flurry of activity for church and relief workers.

(Pastor) Mori-sensei spent several hours with the MTW assessors answering many questions, bringing us to three shelters, and even meeting with the mayor of the city (population 350,000) to confirm that foreign medical workers would be welcomed — something Japan has never allowed in the past. It was wonderful to see the church respond to the many needs of the earthquake/tsunami victims. And yet the need is so great in Iwaki City and for hundreds of miles up the coast.

The first evacuation shelter we visited was an elementary school gymnasium. Approximately 350 people had been housed here immediately after the tsunami. Ten days later, 255 people remained. It was a cold, drizzly day as people of all ages sat or layed on futon mattresses in the cold gym. They looked so hopeless; I can only imagine what they were thinking about: the terrifying experience of the tsunami; the homes, photos, and many things they had lost; the people they had lost or had not yet heard from; what they would do next, and when they would be able to start trying to piece their lives back together.

I spoke with one woman about my age, Hiromi. I asked if her home had been destroyed. She said it had not been, but that it was all wet as the tsynami wave did reach her home. She was there at the time and said it was terrifying, tears welling up in her eyes as she spoke. All I could say is “I’m so sorry.”

As we left the gymasium, one of the community leaders made an announcement about who we were. (All eyes had been fixed on us, as we were the only diversion at the time, and foreigners nonetheless.) At the conclusion of the announcement, everyone applauded for us and bowed with gratitude that they had not been forgotten. Outside the gym, about twenty people were busy cooking the first hot meal that these people would have in ten days.

We then visited a beautiful municipal performing arts center where about 100 people were sleeping in the lobby and hallways. It was warmer here, and there were several televisions — all playing news of the earthquake and tsunami, something that can only further depress these weary people.

The final shelter was a community sports complex, also with about 100 people. The gym was very cold, but the children here had room to run around and play. About five young children quickly ran over to us and said “hello!” That was the extent of their English, but I enjoyed watching Karen speak enthusiastically with them. She reported that they did not talk about their recent experiences, but asked her “Did the earthquake come to your house? Did it make everything a mess?” Although they asked serious questions, it was wonderful to see these kids behaving as normal kids. Yet I know that they will have many bad dreams and other trauma from their experiences and the fear that they have seen in their parents.

We arrived home at 10:45 p.m. It was a long day, but certainly helps me appreciate the magnitude of the disaster, the generosity of Japanese Christians, and the incredible opportunity that we all, as Christians, have to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the people of Japan. For this is truly the only thing that can heal the lives of the people and bring eternal peace to their souls and significance to their lives.

Soli Deo Gloria.

Previous updates below
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Tuesday 7:00AM EDST Update: MTW Chiba Team story; Update from CRASH Japan; Update from Family Forum Japan

Story concerning Pastor Tetsuya Dedachi from the Oyumino Church, the first church plant of the Tokyo/Chiba Team.

Story written by Blair Commons, Director of Global Outreach at Seven Rivers PCA Church in Lecanto (Citrus County), Florida; from Commons FB page.

Pastor Dedachi told of the delivery he made on Thursday. As he went into the city of Iwaki he said it looked like a ghost town. Iwaki is only 8 kilometers outside of the area that has been evacuated due to radiation. At first he thought everyone had evacuated but then they saw one person and asked if they needed water. That person sent out a text message and soon a long line had formed with people needing water.

Pastor Dedachi was amazed at how they came. As they kept filling the containers that each person brought with water he saw an old woman with 4 buckets in her hands. He was afraid they would run out of water and wanted to tell her that she could only fill one of them because of all the other people in the line, but he didn’t have the heart to tell her that. However, this woman, looking back at the others waiting in line said “only fill one of my buckets half full – the others need water too.”

They were able to give water to every single person in line! As they were closing things up to make the long journey back to Chiba a grandmother with her grandchild came riding up on a bicycle. She lived in the next city over but heard that there was water and quickly came to see. Dedachi told her that they had no more and she began to cry. But from the house they were near a person came out and handed her three bottles of water. He said “Please take these, I received some yesterday too. I’m okay.”

Pastor Dedachi said that he has now had a taste of what it must have been like to watch Jesus feed the 5000.

Update from CRASH Japan

As relief efforts to help local communities and churches intensify more than one week after the quake, hope is still strong for survivors and their loved ones as fresh news of rescues and reunions filter through.

Okamoto Hiroshi, pastor of Ishinomaki Bible Baptist Church in Sendai, was feared lost when contact was cut following the tsunami. “No one had been able to locate him,” said Tim Cole, a missionary in Japan whose parents planted the Ishinomaki church. “The tsunami decimated the area they were living in.”

After repeated attempts to make contact, Pastor Okamoto was located by a CRASH Japan relief team. “They went and found him,” explained Cole. “Miraculously, his house was one of the only ones in the area not affected.” Acting quickly at the time of the quake, Pastor Okamoto was able to drive around the houses of his congregation and rescue those living in low lying areas. Taking any who needed help to higher ground, Okamoto’s church, which stands on a hill, is now home to both his family and his congregation. A third team left from the CRASH Japan command center in Tokyo today, ready to deliver assistance and support.

CRASH Japan team members were also present to witness survivors being pulled from the wreckage of their home in Sendai. Attracted by the shouts of emergency workers and those trapped in the house, Ken Ito and others saw Sumi Abe, 80, and her grandson Jin being rescued despite days trapped in the freezing wreckage of their family home. “We’re working with local pastors and I personally went round local houses asking what they needed,” said Ito. CRASH Japan’s sustained efforts to reach those most in need continue, with resources still desperately required to help relieve the crisis unfolding in Japan.

Update from Family Forum Japan FB Page

After a catastrophic disaster, the physical survival needs are immediate, but the emotional and spiritual needs are not far behind. Family Forum Japan head editor, Tsuneo Maejima has been pushing hard to translate printed materials for disaster trauma care in Japanese, partnering with Focus on the Family and other organizations. Need volunteer translators, graphic artists, other helpers as well as funding.

Previous updates below
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Monday, 6:00AM EDST update has a report from the MTW Advanced Needs Assessment Team (ANAT) in Japan; a link to a FB photo page from a member of Dan Iverson’s team; news from Nagoya – PMI missionaries Rev. Koji Esaki and Marcia, a recent Note from Family Forum Japan FB page and an outstanding 25 picture spread from a Boston newspaper.

Report from the MTW Advanced Needs Assessment Team (ANAT) in Japan
Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 8:26pm

As many of you know, on March 18 we traveled to Japan with Mission to the World’s Advanced Needs Assessment Team. The three of us spent the first night in a missionary school in Chiba. We had not been here long before we experienced a significant earthquake aftershock.

During our time here, we will be hosted by MTW director of Japanese missions, Dan Iverson. We will be based in Chiba, outside Tokyo and travel to northern church plants and missional outposts including Nagaoka and Iwaki to survey the areas, assess the delivery of supplies and how MTW can best set up presence to minister to the many people in these hard hit regions. There has been a large group of local care givers eager to begin help distribution food, water, fuel, and clothing. They have located themselves centrally to best serve the evacuee population, now being called the “Nuclear Refugees.”

As Japan continues to lead the world news headlines, the situation is still unclear. Since the earthquake and tsunami there has been ensuing chaos, collapsing nuclear power plants and a radiation outbreak which is causing mass hysteria and numerous relocations. With lives changed forever, this 1st world country has been brought to its knees enduring much tragedy in a short period of time.

Mission to the World has answered the call to help, and by God’s grace, we are answering the call to action serving quickly and effectively. We do know that God has placed us in a position of strength with the depth of our team, our broad presence and our long ministry history in Japan.

Our hope is to start our tour of these areas following worship service this morning.

More to follow.

Dan Jenny

Link to a FB photo page from a member of Dan Iverson’s team working in the Awaki area. Very helpful to get an idea of how thing look on the field.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=1775103190897&id=1638863646&aid=97671

News From Nagoya – PMI missionaries Rev. Koji Esaki and Marcia

(Nagoya is 400 miles south of the earthquake zone and is the second major MTW work – with Chiba City – in Japan. Report posted by Tom Hudson)

In response to some of your concerns, we are doing fine–sort of–and not experiencing any of the loss, trauma, cold and hardships that those in northern Japan are dealing with. Having said that, we felt another strong aftershock last night as we were going to bed at about the same magnitude as the initial quake, which reminds us that things are not over yet.

The Fukushima power plant is 400 miles north of us, however the school (where I teach) has closed for three days and gone to online learning. Over the last two days, there has been a slow but steady exodus of families and on Wednesday afternoon the school decided to close for the rest of the week. All of this is due to the uncertainty of the nuclear plant.

French and German companies in our area have moved their personnel back to Europe, and the French embassy closed in Tokyo. A handful of teachers are leaving for Hong Kong, Honolulu, and other places for the next five days. So we are OK, but life is not normal. We trust that it will be soon.

As to people joining in the rescue operation, our small church has pledged to help another church in our area to drive up and deliver blankets and other needed supplies. A teacher from our school (former emergency services staffer) will most likely join a Canadian rescue team that arrived this week. HOPE international, with whom we have been connected with over the years, is complementing a grass roots operation up in Sendai, and has sent a board member (medical doctor) to certify the many dead. People are doing what they can, including saving energy for the north by unplugging and turning off electricity as much as possible. The grocery shelves here are nearly bare of water and instant ramen:)

We do continue to pray that the nuclear power plant would come under a control that can be certified, that the weather would get better, that government officials would make wise decisions, and that the survivors and rescue teams would receive all that they need.

Recent Note from Family Forum Japan FB page:
The TV is reporting that the dead/missing toll has passed 20,000, and that food and water are in short supply at the shelters. The Red Cross Hospital in Ishinomaki (my childhood home), built for 400, has 1000 people. There are 4882 deaths in Ishinomaki so far and 10,000 missing – half of the dead and most of the missing are in Ishinomaki.

Japan One Week Later:
A week after a 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunami leveled large swaths of northeastern Japan, effects of the disaster are still rippling across the country and the world. Misery of the victims continues unabated, as shelter, food, water, and fuel have become dear. A nuclear facility crisis has both troops and workers scrambling to keep the situation from getting worse, while foreign governments are urging their citizens to evacuate. (25 photos total)

BBC provides animation of earthquakes during last 10 days:
Hundreds of aftershocks have continued to shake Japan, days after the massive magnitude 9 earthquake that triggered a devastating tsunami on Friday, 11 March.Press the play button or use the slider to see the spread, size and frequency of earthquakes in Japan greater than magnitude 5 since 10 March. Link here.

(Our thanks to Judith Newland Birkey for sending the last two story links.)
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For posts from the earlier article covering the first 10 days, click here: