Thursday, April 21, 2011

Own our own

Another good day and I got a lot of things done. The group which I traveled with the week before last has filled with volunteers. It's a good thing that so many people have signed up. So, instead of waiting, I've contacted a few charity organizations that have connections with shelters in Tohoku. By which I received a long list of needs and goods that these shelters to operate for 1 week. Most of the items on the list involve groceries and perishables. One helpful group has been Second Harvest Japan. So, a few calls to concerned friends locally leads to planning out our own trip. Get a truck/van collect a few things from here, and charitable minded companies, and go. It's better than stressing and waiting. I'm a strong believer in self sufficiency. It's one of the proudest things I can say about many of my fellow of Vietnamese Refugees that came to America in the wave of immigrants post 1975. Most of us came to America, refused or took minimal handouts, and accepted that in life there are no entitlements. So, it's embedded in me to be resourceful and proactive; I can't just sit around hoping that some coordinator puts me on their list. Why wait to do the right thing. Hence is the next. I'm going to sort out the logistics and try to make a run next week. As written before, it's always important to pay in forward. Never let a chance to do the right thing pass you by in life. Well, today's is short for words for me. Nothing too eventful has happened for us in Tokyo and most folks are to work and closing out deals and projects before Golden Week. I'll write more tonight.

2 comments:

  1. Recently, a community pillar, friend and client, Melanio Duarte, died. He was the owner and head chef of a local caffe (www.caffemelanio.com). Since his death, we've been moved to help out in any way we can. The hole left in the community by his passing is great. "Why wait to do the right thing," indeed. ;)

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  2. Sorry to hear about your friend. It's always terrible to loose a good person in the community. Fill the void with good things.

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