Just in time for National Preparedness Month, which begins September 1st, Direct Relief is partnering with social gaming company, Zynga, to help communities around the world prepare for emergencies. Beginning today, one of Zynga’s most popular games, Mafia Wars, will allow players to get involved in Direct Relief’s preparedness initiatives by featuring a limited edition item for purchase in the
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Direct Relief and the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) awarded this week $82,000 to the Shanti Volunteer Association (SVA) to support the remodeling of a mobile library vehicle. The current mobile library, which serves 150 households in Iwate Prefecture on the tsunami-affected coast, is a small truck with bookshelves. To continue operating and expand services to additional temporary housing establishments,
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By Carl Williams, Direct Relief Japan Recovery Coordinator While on a return trip through the broken and washed away city of Kesennuma in Miyagi Prefecture to meet with two nongovernmental organizations Direct Relief supports, I saw a familiar house on the other side of a huge ship grounded among immense piles of debris. It was a two-story house, which I remembered
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This is a personal “From the Field” story by Direct Relief Employee Jenny Hutain, Emergency Response Manager. September 11 marks the six-month anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. As we reach this milestone in the recovery process, Floyd Mori (Executive Director, Japanese American Citizens League), Bhupi Singh (Direct Relief’s COO/CFO), Carl Williams (Direct Relief’s Japan Disaster Relief Coordinator), and I
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Direct Relief and the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) recently awarded $400,000 to the Association for Aid and Relief Japan (AAR Japan) to support AAR Japan’s Phase 2 Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Project. Although AAR Japan’s primary focus is on the distribution of food and other essential items, the 31-year-old organization has also initiated long-term recovery efforts that include repairing
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Santa Barbara, CA and Washington, D.C.—The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and Direct Relief International today announced an additional $1 million in grants to five Japanese nonprofit groups coordinating relief efforts and providing services for the most vulnerable people affected by the earthquake and tsunami. $1 million in cash from the JACL-Direct Relief Japan Relief and Recovery Fund will be
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