Report in the Tohkai Shimpo local newspaper.
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Playground of Hope in Shinchi, Fukushima – Report
Shinchi, Fukushima, Sept. 4-5, 2015
A New Playground for the Kids in Shinchi, Fukushima
Event Overview
Late last year, Playground of Hope (PoH) proposed to nadia to work on a joint project for building a playground in Shinchi Machi, Fukushima. The Fukushima prefecture has been greatly affected by the March-11, 2011 disaster, from the earthquake, the tsunami and following radiation. It has also been affected by another disaster: being forgotten and left out of most of the volunteer and rebuilding recovery efforts as often Miyagi prefecture and the city of Ishinomaki have seen more inflows of volunteers. As the situation evolved in Fukushima and the level of radiation receeded to normal and safe levels (even below Tokyo levels in many areas such as Shinchi). nadia decided to work on the deployment of a new Playground of Hope at Komagamine Elementary School.
The fundraising efforts
Such endeavors requires a lot of support, both in terms of volunteers and also financially. nadia approached its partner organizations, Societe Generale and The Lycée Français International de Tokyo (LFIT) to help deliver on this project.
Societe Generale organized a Bike Ride fundraiser on Oct. 25-26, 2014 to raise funds for this project. More than 20 staff from it’s Tokyo office volunteered in the fundraiser efforts and committed to raise over 600 euros each in support of nadia. Many staff, friends and family members supported each of the bike riders fundraisers.
A few weeks later, the The Lycée Français International de Tokyo also organized the Course de Noël (Christmas Run) where kids from the primary school setup a fundraiser race also in support of nadia. Many kids, their parents, school staff and teachers contributed to the fundraising efforts. Both events allowed nadia to raise a very large portion of the funds necessary for the project.
The building of the playground and volunteer efforts
In September 2015, 17 Societe Generale employees and family members as well as 11 LFIT students, teachers and parents volunteered to be part of the deployment of the Playground at Komagamine Elementary School.
The volunteers left on the evening of Friday September 4th and travelled by bus to Sendai. The journey by bus went really smoothly and we all went to bed quickly in order to be ready and sharp for the big day the next morning leaving Sendai at 8am to be in Shinchi-Machi at 9am.
Upon our arrival we were warmly greeted by the Komagamine Elementary school staff along with PoH team. The representatives of the school explained how the area had been impacted by the March 11 disaster and how the area and school has been recovering and now welcomes displaced kids (14% of the 166 kids) from other affected areas of Fukushima. Although radiation levels in this town is now below Tokyo levels, the city and whole prefecture are now fighting another problem: obesity in kids is on the rise following years of reduced outdoor play, hence the importance of providing this new playground to the community. After this explanation, everyone got to meet each other briefly in order to get to work together as efficiently as possible.
We were assigned tasks that were super well organised and everything went very smoothly and fast. By noon, 75% of the playground was already set up. We took a welcome lunch break together again, allowing everyone to get to know each other a little bit more. By 4pm the playground was fully completed and it was time for a big BBQ and fun sharing times, that again, the volunteers teams pulled out beautifully. The local families and friends of the school were amazed and happy how such a jolly fun group of people managed to give their kids the best gifts of all : being able to PLAY MORE !
All in all, this project and adventure was a huge success by telling how louds the laughters were heard and cheers the kids made when they were finally allowed to play with their new playground.
Everyone worked hard and enthusiastically throughout the day, working in groups where one another hardly knew each other but always followed the tasks assigned with smiles and cheers. Everyone got along so well in a very simple and efficient manner, teaching the great values of effort, team spirit, giving and thankfulness.
A word of thanks
This project would not be possible without the contribution of all the volunteers from and donators who supported it. The smiles on the local kids faces, and on everyone’s faces were priceless. The memory of happy volunteers that gave their time, support and full enthusiasm on that day and the immediate results of this fantastic project will resonate for many years to come in our minds and hearts. We all wish to be part of more projects like that in the months and years to come! Thanks for your support. Best wishes and see you all soon for the next project !
nadia Annual General Assembly 2015
nadia’s Annual General Assembly is open to the public. However, room constraints limit us to 30 people including executive members. Please register early to secure your seat.
DATE: Tuesday, November 24 2015, 7:30 pm
VENUE: Our charity partner, Societe Generale is kindly offering us a conference room
• Palace Bldg., 1-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8206 Japan
(Subways: Otemachi or Tokyo stations)
MAIN AGENDA (subject to change):
– reminder of nadia’s vision and endeavors
– previous years activities and financial report
– next years projects and budget
– structure of the NPO
– new appointments
– AOB
– Q&A
We need the following information both for nadia official GA records as well as for communication purposes in case there is any change in dates or place.
Please send an email to: nadia.volunteer@gmail.com with the subject “Participation General Assembly” with following information and we will get back to you once we confirm the registration.
1. name
2. contactable phone number and e-mail address
3. nadia volunteer experience (joined before, or never joined)
Thank you very much and we look forward to seeing you soon,
nadia board members
Volunteering in Joso – Report
On September 10 2015 the Kinugawa River banks bursted in Joso city after the heavy rainfall of Typhoon Etau. It caused massive flooding in the Joso area and other places in Tochigi and Ibaraki.
The weekend after the disaster nadia core member Mamiko was already up in Joso and started connecting and coordinating with local groups, other volunteers and the official volunteer center.
Before and during Silver week nadians gathered and drove up to Joso to help with the cleanup.
There were piles of garbage along the roads and in dedicated waste zones. Water always causes huge damage as we know.
We received work assignments from another volunteer group and the official Joso volunteer center. Work was hard and included removing of wooden flooring, removal of dirt and water underneath floors and various other tasks.
It’s only about an hour drive from central Tokyo to Joso, if you are interested in volunteering in Joso, then you can contact
1) official Joso volunteer center – http://joso.vc
or we also recommend
2) independent volunteer center (Genki Mura – contact person Mr. Hattori).
Mr. Hattori plans to continue helping to at least the end of the year, volunteers are welcome. They will supply basic tools so volunteers just need to bring their own boots, gloves, masks etc.
Please contact nadia for contact info.
Yamathon 2015 – Report
By Ron Choi
Figure 1. 770 Yamathon participants packed the Galleria area in Tokyo building.
Figure 2. J.P. Morgan Lentos II team had hands down the most interesting station photos.
On 30th of May, 2015, close to 800 people participated in Yamathon, a race around the 29 stations of Yamanote line in Tokyo. The event is quite familiar to the Tokyo residents as it has been held annually since 2009. This year International Volunteer Group (IVG), the organizer of Yamathon, decided to support NADIA to help their efforts in Tohoku recovery. Joe Pournovin, Events Director for IVG, noted they became interested helping NADIA after seeing its numerous projects in Tohoku area. The raised funds from this year’s Yamathon will go towards, among other things, building more playgrounds in Tohoku.
In Yamathon, teams of four are required to walk or run to all 29 stations and take a photo of themselves in front of each station sign to prove they visited all the stations along the Yamanote line. Most people walk. Some run. It is not only a physical challenge, but is also a navigational challenge as the total distance can be anywhere between 40 to 48 km depending on the paths one takes. Majority of the participants have difficulty navigating the tracks between Gotanda and Shinagawa where the route from one station to another is far from obvious.
Figure 3. The funds raised in Yamathon will go towards building more playgrounds like this in Tohoku.
2015 Yamathon was special for a number of reasons. First, it was the venue. This year’s event was held in the Galleria area of Tokyo building, quite a departure from Yoyogi Park and Tokyo International Forum. It’s indoors and a much smaller location, but it provided an opportunity to be much better organized. The post-event fundraiser party was held at P.C.M., the bar on the first floor of the same building, which proved to be a big hit with the participants. The bar provided a great location to raise more funds through holding a raffle. NADIA provided many volunteers who were involved in the organizing with IVG for months leading up to the event and also doing the physical work of putting on the big event itself. The total number of participants was the largest ever –210 teams with 770 walkers and runners, a huge increase from 480 in 2014.
The feedback from the participants was resoundingly positive. Yamathon is, more than anything, a fun event. One doesn’t have to be super fit athlete to participate. Some families with children completed the entire course. Also, given that teams are required to take photos at each station, this provides many opportunities to be creative. In fact, some of the photos taken are quite amazing in their inventiveness. Many teams take long breaks during the race – stopping in cafes and restaurants for food and drinks, etc. are all par for the course. There were a large number of teams wearing costumes, making it a much livelier event.
Given the success of this year, the organizers are quite optimistic they may be able to break the 1000 participants figure next year. It only means more funds raised for worthy Tohoku for more years to come.
Figure 4. More playgrounds like these will be built thanks to Yamathon.
Figure 5. J.P. Morgan Lentos II team had hands down the most interesting station photos.
Article: Kanto-Tohoku Football Cup Connects Communities
An article was published in the Tokyo Weekender about the recent kids soccer tournament. Please read here:
Kanto-Tohoku Football Cup Connects Communities
Ishinomaki Sanja Matsuri Volunteering in July
Summer is coming! Speaking of summer, YES, Matsuri season is also approaching. Nadia has supported a children’s matsuri called Sanja Matsuri every year since it was re-established in 2012, and we will do so again this year. We will leave Tokyo at midnight on Friday July 17th, and will come back on Monday the 20th (it’s a holiday!). Please join the event as the locals are really looking forward to seeing Nadians this year too. Somen noodles provided by the local women will be really tasty, especially after hard work! Kids are also welcome to enjoy the festival together with local kids. This will be a good opportunity to show the locals that they are not forgotten, and to provide support when they need it.
Please sign up here
The 1st Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup – Report
Tokyo, May 23-24, 2015
Hosted at
Aoba-Japan International School
Event Overview
Nadia NPO is actively supporting many projects for children affected by the March 11, 2011 disaster in Tohoku. Since 2013, Nadia has delivered over 15 new “Playgrounds of Hope” to disaster-stricken areas in Tohoku, in addition to sending children affected by Fukushima disaster to summer homestays in Italy. Last September, Nadia supported the delivery of a new community center/soccer club house in Rikuzentakata in coordination with Hisashi Kato, a J-League team general manager and former Japanese National Team captain who has been active in rebuilding projects in the Tohoku area.
The Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup is the result of a collaborative proposal to invite soccer teams from the disaster-stricken Tohoku area to the Kanto area to participate in a soccer tournament to build lasting friendships between Tohoku and Kanto, in addition to exposing them to an international community of children and families in the much in the same way the global community has rallied together in support of the Tohoku region since 2011.
The members of Nadia began by scouting for a venue to host this event at a variety of locations including soccer stadiums, public and private fields and international schools, to gauge interest and the feasibility of this event. Through the scouting process Nadia was met with the unparalleled enthusiasm from sports director Greg Culos of Aoba-Japan International School (A-JIS) to host this event. The initial kickoff meeting for this project was held at the Hikarigaoka campus of A-JIS on February 2nd, 2015, with the ambitious target to secure the commitment of a total of 8 soccer teams (4 from the Kanto area and 4 from Tohoku area), secure funding from sponsors, and coordinate the logistics of transportation, lodging, tournament schedule, volunteers and food preparation for this event within the span of less than 4 months.
Through the coordination of Greg Culos and Hisashi Kato, the Kanto teams of the A-JIS Junior Tigers, Tiny Titans, DSTY Eagles and the Yokohama International School Dragons and the Tohoku teams of Aizu/Koriyama Santos, Shishiori FC, Ohno Sports Youth FC and Ishinomaki Fantasista FC were invited to the friendship soccer tournament.
For top left to bottom right: Aizu/Koriyama Santos, Yokohama International School Dragons, Ohno Sports Youth FC, Ishinomaki Fantasista FC, A-JIS Junior Tigers, Tiny Titans, DSTY Eagles and Shishiori FC
The core Nadia members of Guy Roberge, Justin Ho, Fri McWilliams, Naomi Rennie and Morgan Knight in coordination with Greg Culos formed the core committee to coordinate and execute this event to great success. Operation of the event was coordinated by volunteers from Nadia and the participating sponsor organizations to help with setup, supervision, food preparation and refereeing of the games.
Arrival of the Tohoku Teams
The Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup was hosted on the weekend of May 23rd and 24th with the Tohoku teams arriving on the evening of Friday, May 22nd to dorm at the gymnasium of A-JIS. Many of the children from Tohoku were in Tokyo for the first time. The Tohoku kids were so excited after their arrival to dorm at A-JIS, they were found to have woken up to an energetic sunny start of the day by 6:00 am (much to the dismay of the supporting Tohoku coaches staying with the children overnight, who were hoping for some extra sleep).
Day 1 Soccer Matches and Activities
The Tokyo teams and volunteers arrived on the morning of May 23rd when meetings for the coaches and volunteers were held. The opening ceremony hosted by Greg and Guy set the outline and tone of the event to be one of friendly competition and sportsmanship. For Day 1 teams were divided into 2 round robins of 4 teams (2 from Tohoku and 2 from Kanto), with each team playing 3 games. Prior meetings with 
coaches indicated that maximizing game time for the teams would offer the most enjoyment for the players, and a tournament schedule of 45-minute team rotations (2 x 20 minutes) was created.
Round robin games commenced at 9am and ran throughout the day, through lunch and right up until dinner. Teams that were not playing on the fields had the opportunity to watch and learn from the different play styles on show between the different teams and the resulting matches. The event venue also offered a basketball court, available space in the gymnasium and the school pool for additional activities for the participants to enjoy themselves.
The events continued well into late in the afternoon with the soccer teams being taken to the local sento to bathe after their final matches. A dinner BBQ was hosted by the volunteers consisting of hotdogs, hamburgers, salad and grilled vegetables.
Both the Tohoku teams and Kanto teams were exhausted from a full day of activities by the evening and retired to the gymnasium where they would dorm for the night in preparation for the 2nd day of soccer matches.
Throughout the day, student volunteers of A-JIS were gracious enough to set aside time to work alongside with the adults while also volunteering to handle tweeting and providing live video streams of the event online. The staff of Caezar’s Kitchen were gracious to donate their time and provide breakfast and bentos for the first day of the matches, while also assisting with the procurement of vegetables for the volunteer-run BBQ on Saturday evening and the finale BBQ hosted on Sunday . The French Chef community, including Pachon and Amicale des Cuisiniers et Patissiers Français au Japon kindly donated a swath of high quality prepared meats, cheese, bread and wine for the event closing BBQ.
Day 2 Soccer Matches and Activities
The schedule of the second day was left open, depending on the results of the first day. In the spirit of friendship and sportsmanship, the organizing committee felt that it would be best for the coaches to be involved with establishing the tournament schedule for the second day, to allow their teams to have the most enjoyable and competitive matches.
The coaches were so excited by the enthusiasm of their teams displayed during the matches of the first day, so the original game schedule for Sunday was extended to start earlier from 8 am and last till 1:30 pm – right before the scheduled departure times of the Tohoku teams – to maximize play time.
Like Saturday, the children woke to an early start and were practicing on the soccer pitch by 7 am and the staff of Caesar’s Kitchen had breakfast for kids ready by 7:30 am to have the teams ready for their matches by 8 am. The 2nd day of the event had a total of 8 matches among all teams, to determine the final rankings and the winners of the Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup.
With the games running throughout the day, the volunteers from the sponsor organizations came together to prepare for the finale BBQ with a variety of fine meats, cheese, bread and dessert graciously donated by the community of L’Amicale des Cuisiniers et Patissiers Français au Japon.
BBQ on Sunday featured donated French products to the delight of all kids and participants
By 1:30 pm after the rounds of intense play, the tournament came to a close and the competing teams were brought together for the closing ceremony. Placement awards were for:
- First Place: DSTY Eagles, awarded by Mr. Joji Hiratsuka, Chairman of Nadia NPO
- Second Place: A-JIS Junior Jaguars, awarded by Mr. Ron Choi, CSR Committee at J.P. Morgan
- Third Place: Ishinomaki Fantasista FC, awarded by Mr. Guillaume Burtschell, Chief Country Officer of Societe Generale in Japan
- Friendship Award: Shishiori FC, awarded by Jean-Pierre Biard, CSR Committee at BNP Paribas
Joji Hiratsuka, Chairman of Nadia with the champions, DSTY Eagles
All participating teams received a Nadia gift bag containing:
- A Friendly Cup T-Shirt and Program
- A soft mini soccer ball from Kato-san’s J-League team
- A laminated newsletter souvenir of the event
In addition, the Tohoku teams received a gift of French salt from the Isle of Rhé donated by Omnisens.
It’s all about Friendship
Whether it is on the field or in other activities held throughout the weekend, our goal was to provide a memorable event and long lasting friendships between all kids. On that aspect, we can say our mission was accomplished.
May the friendships developed over a memorable weekend last a lifetime!
The Sponsors’ Cup
After the departure of the Tohoku and Kanto kids in the early afternoon and the completion of cleanup activities, time was set aside for sponsors to square off in a friendly, but fiercely fought, Sponsors’ Cup.
By 5:30 pm, after 4 intense round robin games played by each of the 4 corporate sponsors teams and a team of Tohoku coaches and kids from A-JIS involved in the event, the top 2 teams were selected to play in the Sponsors’ Cup Final.
Congratulations to the winners!
- First Place: “The Coaches Team”
- Second Place: Societe Generale Team #2
For top left to bottom right: SG-1, SG-2, Coaches Team, DBG, JPM
A word of thanks
This event would not have been possible without the support of many organizations and individuals. Nadia would like to express their thanks to A-JIS Ken Sell, Head of School, and Greg Culos, Director of AJ Extension, for working hand-in-hand with Nadia on this 1st Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup. We would like to also say thank you to our corporate sponsors who provided financial and logistical support with their volunteers. Finally, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to our food sponsors for the delicious food and support provided throughout the tournament.
Thanks to all our supporters and sponsors!
| Corporate Sponsors | Host Venue | Food Sponsors |
| Societe Generale Capital Group J.P. Morgan BNP Paribas Deutsche Bank Group |
Aoba-Japan International School | Cezars Kitchen Pachon, Omnisens and other members of L’Amicale des Cuisiniers et Patissiers Français au Japon who contributed with in-kind food donations |
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Nadia Volunteers and Corporate Volunteers
Playground of Hope Repair Trip Report – May 2015
By Ron Choi
Figure 1. Our May volunteers in front of the refinished playground at Kaihatsu Koen #599 in Ishinomaki, Miyagi-ken.
On 9th and 10th of May, 2015, International Volunteer Group (IVG) and NADIA volunteers, in partnership with the members of Playground of Hope (PoH), conducted maintenance and repair work on the beautiful playgrounds built by NADIA two years ago in Ishinomaki and Minamisanriku, Miyagi prefecture. It was the first playground repair trip for NADIA..
It was also the first time IVG members participated in a NADIA volunteer trip. Starting this year, IVG, the organizer of an endurance race called Yamathon, will donate all funds raised through their event to NADIA. In its seventh year, the Yamathon is a endurance race by teams of three or four navigating all 29 stations of Yamanote Line, which encircles the central area of Tokyo. It is a hugely popular and fun race, but it also raises money for good causes. Joe Pournovin of IVG told how Yamathon was started, “We wanted to do something in Tokyo, some sort of endurance challenge. You look at certain other events … they’re expensive, you need to take time off work, you need to commit to training and practice. Yamathon, you don’t need to do so much training. It’s in the center of Tokyo, and it’s affordable.”
Figure 2. 2014 Yamathon walkers and runners.
NADIA is extremely grateful for the donation, much of which will help us continue the Playground Of Hope project. NADIA is also helping IVG in organizing, planning, and executing the Yamathon event on May 30th. This year’s event will be the biggest ever. The venue will be in Tokyo Building ( a.k.a. TOKIA building ) in Marunouchi, Tokyo, located next to Tokyo Station. It will also host Tohoku Market. Many vendors, such as Fukushima-kan from Tohoku will bring local crafts, food, sake, juices and sweets,. There will also be a post-event fundraiser party at PCM, a bar next to event venue which will have DJs playing excellent music and IVG will auction off prizes to raise money for NADIA.
Figure 3. 2014 Yamathon participants are required to take photos at each station to prove they covered the entre distance. Some of the racers are quite creative with photos. Like theis team from J.P. Morgan in 2014.
When we arrived at the job site at Kaihatsu Koen #599 in Watanoha area of Ishinomaki, we found children and parents already at the park. The park has become a focal point for the community. The residents, many of whom still living in temporary housing compounds near the park, meet and gather there each and everyday. The community leaders and towns folks remembered us from our build trip back in August of 2013. They came to thank us and brought food and drinks for us. Many of the children wanted to help with sanding the wood. There were many touching moments throughout the day.
The play set looked worn out. Hundreds of kids must have played there the past two years. Some wooden beams were chipped and much of the waterproof stain was gone. Some nuts and bolts needed tightening. We spent the entire Saturday patching, sanding, and apply wood stain to make sure the play set will last a long time. After a daylong activity, the play set looked absolutely brand new. The town kids who show up on Sunday morning will be pleasantly surprised.
On Sunday, we drove to Minamisanriku to do some repair work on the second playground we built back in September of 2013. It is on a gorgeous park with lots of greenery and grass. When we arrived we found two root sidings on the small tower were missing. We cut down a wood panel to replace the missing pieces on the roof. We did more patching, sanding, and painted on wood stains.
Figure 4. The playground we built in Minamisanriku back in September of 2013. It is situated in a beautiful park with green grass.
Figure 5. Our volunteers, Joe Pournovin and Tsutomu Horiuchi, test out the playground.
Joe Pounovin said of the trip, “An unbelievable weekend with some wonderful people fixing playgrounds in Ishinomaki and Minamisanriku. Seeing the good in doing good and doing it with a smile – that’s what it’s all about.”
Figure 6. NADIA and IVG volunteers being supervised by Michael Anop of Playground of Hope.
It was a great trip. Hopefully we can continue to go back to maintain all the playground we built in 2013 and 2014. We will need donations and volunteers. Thanks to all for helping us.
Figure 7. Koji Oishi and Jennifer Guess of IVG and our hero, Tsutomu Horiuchi-san.
Figure 8. Uga Kayo of Ishinomaki made this bento for us. Undoubtedly the best bento in Tohoku.
Figure 9. Sharing the sweets given to us by local residents with a local child.
Figure 10. Local children wanted to help out with sanding.
Figure 11. All our volunteers after the repair work was finished..
Nadia Press Release on “Nadia International Soccer Friendly Cup”
This event will be held for the purpose of providing an opportunity for kids from Tohoku affected areas, Tokyo, and from abroad to come together, compete together in a friendly soccer tournament and build friendship through activities of the 2 day event. The event will also help raise awareness of participating Tokyo residents and international community on the situation of those directly affected by the 3/11/2011 earthquake and aftermath from Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima .
Please read here…