Ohana Social Responsibility - 2017.04 Update
I think that as parents the desire to give back to our own children is so inherent and deep. This community has shown itself to be truly special by reaching outside of our own families to give to children who do not have the same opportunities as our own. We are so overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for Give and want to extend our sincerest THANK YOU to you all.
We succeeded our fundraising goals by raising 1.6 million JPY for workshops in Tohoku and a kindergarten classroom in Cambodia - truly incredible! As planned, our Cambodia project planning and fundraising will continue through next winter. But we can (and will) get started now by opening up classes for kindergarteners this summer (in the existing building before the regular school starts). This is a great way to get the children acclimated to school while construction of the classroom itself starts in late fall/early winter during the dry season.
For Tohoku, we are going to continue our art workshops, starting with another volunteer opportunity this spring (more to come!)
World Assistance Cambodia
Together with World Assistance for Cambodia, we are supporting primary school development in rural Cambodia. Ohana International School in Tokyo is partnering with World Assistance for Cambodia to build a kindergarten on to an existing primary school in rural Cambodia called the Kirivorn School. Our goal is to provide the head start that children need to be successful in the classroom, build critical life skills, find new opportunities and ultimately, realize their dreams.
Place to Grow
Ohana International School is preparing for our third children's art workshop in Tohoku. Our partner charity, Place to Grow, is a space for creativity, imagination, and inspiration to flourish in post-disaster communities. Survivors and outside volunteers connect, bringing an explosion of positive energy to the community. This connection creates hope, resilience and opportunity, which is crucial to long term recovery. In Japan, monthly interactive children's workshops and annual inter-generational community parties are the core activity of Place to Grow.
What it Means to Give Back in Cambodia
We are a community who believes deeply in the value of early education during the most critical time of a person's brain development before the age of eight. By providing learning opportunities during this time, research shows the positive impacts on cognitive skills, social-emotional growth, gross-motor skills and executive functioning.
As parents of young children, we were inspired by the stories from our friend Debbie Krishner-Steele who runs World Assistance for Cambodia. It seemed so fitting to try and provide the same type of opportunity for other children that we give our own.
Inspiring Connections in Tohoku
Our volunteers from Tokyo designed an inspiring artistic curriculum that would encourage the children to explore their creativity through XXX
This year we are preparing to head back to Tohoku to XXX
