Posts

Jet lag is real

I was OK for the first couple of days, then I managed to crash until 1 PM two days later. Oh well. I posted this on social media. When people asked me about how was our trip, this has been my response. I've been very fortunate over the years to be part of excellent teams. Carol, Miyuki and me flew back on Saturday, Ty and Daniel are still in Japan with their families (Ed. note, the two gentlemen may be back in the States by the time this is published) . Every year just before the trip I ask myself if we can really make this work. I think about everything that can go wrong, yet somehow we manage to get done what needs to get done. I'm convinced it requires divine intervention. More importantly, I've always been blessed with good teams to work with. And once we're there, I'm reminded why we're there. Many of the vacant lots are where homes once stood, the previous residents may not have the resources to rebuild. I previously posted how, in particular, senior resid...

Extreme Makeover, HQ edition

  Last year, we spent our time clearing out a former nail salon which had been mostly unoccupied since the earthquake. What I didn't know at the time is the building (and the other building next door) would serve as headquarters for Noto Help. Stephen is in charge of headquarters. He asked if we could clean out and help reorganize the variety of items that were located in different, sometimes random locations. We said we'd be happy to help out. We emptied out much of what was downstairs, including the storage area. We also helped prepare some donations for use. In this photo, Miyuki, Carol, and Keiko completely cleaned out a donated refrigerator. A quick side note. Keiko is an international business and entertainment entrepreneur who posses a caring heart. Technically she's my niece once removed (her Dad is my cousin, but that didn't seem right, so I just refer to her as family. Learning through social media that we were here in Japan, she messaged me about whether she ...