Two Aquinas students traveled to Japan this summer as part of the Help Japan Service Volunteer Program to work towards relief efforts after the devastating earthquake and tsunami experienced there earlier this year. Brianna Scott and Matthew Banas, both Japanese minors, were chosen from 14 candidates to represent Aquinas in the program’s first journey to Japan, where they participated in a week-long service effort.

“Once I heard that this program was available, I was motivated by my love for Japan to join,” Scott said. “This offers a great opportunity for volunteer hours and a cultural experience. There is a lot to be learned when you travel to a different country and help in a disaster area. It is something much more profound than viewing it through media television.”

The earthquake and tsunami which devastated the island country on March 11, along with the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster, left 256,714 refugees and an estimated 26,000 dead or missing. By June, only half of the 52,000 temporary homes requested by the government had been built, leaving almost 100,000 people homeless. Damages from the earthquake and tsunami alone had reached $210 billion by July, making this the world’s costliest disaster. On Friday, however, the Japanese government released a $167 billion five-year plan to speed up recovery and enter full-scale reconstruction.

“Japan does not have enough free man power to make a successful and quick comeback,” Scott said. “They have a growing elderly population with a shrinking youth population. Younger, more able-bodied volunteers are needed.”

Scott and Banas, who were the only two college-age American volunteers in the program, worked toward cleaning up the natural areas around Iwate, Japan. Their job was to pick up non-compostable debris, while keeping an eye out for any family mementos or treasures which might be returned. Volunteers from the United States also worked side-by-side with Japanese students, and received translation assistance from a guide from KIE International Travel Agency, Akira Hatajiri.

“He was an outstanding guide,” Scott said. “We owe a lot to him and are very grateful we had him to help with translation and interpretation.”

The students were also given opportunities to sightsee in Morioka, where they stayed, as well as Tokyo. They were given the first day and the last two days of the excursion, to travel beyond their work site and Morioka, and visited Tokyo.

“I enjoyed the nightlife in Morioka. Everything is safe, lighthearted fun. The culture came alive in these places and it made for great people watching,” Scott said. “Harajuku [in Tokyo] was made famous in the States thanks to Gwen Stefani. It is very popular for girls to shop there. That was my favorite place to go.”

Scott and Banas were two of the ten desired volunteers which Aquinas hoped to send overseas. However, the $5,000 in funding offered by Amway alone was not enough to meet that goal. There is hope that with increased local funding, more students will be given the opportunity to participate in this program.

“Since this position is located in a different country, it would look great on a resume because it would show interest in other cultures,” Banas said. “Not only would it help with the disaster recovery speed up, but it would also immerse you in the culture which could make learning the language so much easier.”

Already, plans are being made for the next excursion where, with more volunteer and financial support, they hope to expand the program and offer more clean-up assistance in small fishing communities.

“Hopefully by jump-starting the surrounding environments many of the trade fishers and farmers can get back to work faster,” Scott said. “This will put money back into their pockets and Japan’s economy. That is our main goal.”