JAPANESE mums have raised thousands of pounds to help people in Japan recover after the earthquake and tsunami which struck the north-east on March 11.
After hearing about the natural disaster which has left over 8,000 dead and over 13,000 people listed as missing, Rina Shoji said she “had to do something to help.”
She organised two cake sales at Moss Hall Infant and Junior School in Finchley and enlisted the help of other mums.
Pupils, staff and parents supported the Japan Earthquake Tsunami Appeal, helping to raise over £3,500 which Ms Shoji hopes to send to Japan as soon as possible.
Head teacher Robin Warren said: “I think it’s absolutely phenomenal what they have done and the way the whole school community instantly got involved.”
Ms Shoji has two children, six-year-old Yayoi Shoji and four-year-old Satoshi Shoji, and came from Japan to live in Finchley two years ago.
She said: “The people who live here are thinking about us and are worried about us as if it is their own disaster.
“Everyone has been so generous - one of my daughter’s classmates brought £10 from her pocket-money box.”
Ms Shoji’s parents live in Chiba Prefecture, south-east of Tokyo and were warned to get to a shelter before the tsunami hit.
Ms Shoji said: “I managed to get in touch with them a day later and they were fine, but I am horrified at the information coming through on the television – everyday the situation is getting worse and worse.”
Many are still searching for their loved ones and concerns continue about radiation levels surrounding Fukushima nuclear power plant.
Two-years-ago Asana Yamaguchi moved to Finchley from Sendai, one of the areas hit by the tsunami, and has two young boys at the school.
She said: “I am still worried about my missing aunt's family who live in Ishinomaki where the tsunami came and my sister who lives in Fukushima where people are in fear of the radiation leak problem."
British Red Cross is currently in Japan providing first aid and emergency healthcare, as well as distributing relief items.
To make a donation towards the charity’s Japan Tsunami Appeal visit: http://www.redcross.org.uk/Donate-Now/Make-a-single-donation/Japan-Tsunami-Appeal
For ways to make a donation via the Embassy of Japan in the UK visit: http://www.uk.emb-japan.go.jp/en/visa/Donations_earthquake160311.html
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