Sakura Koontz Photography

Last night, I called my grandpa for the first time after the horrible earthquake in Japan. Although he is doing well, his voice sounded so weak and so far. He explained to me that the stores were all out of water and food. The night before, the lights went out while they were eating dinner and because of the lack of electricity, they weren’t able to use their electric blanket. It’s cold there…a lot colder than I can ever imagine. I felt so helpless and all I could say was “ganbatte” (hang in there).

There’s not much I can do, and I realize that. Earlier today, I stumbled upon Utterly Engaged and discovered that they have teamed up with Ever Ours to start For Japan With Love.  All the donations will be going to Shelter Box, which provides emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies to those who need it most.  According to them, ShelterBox was one of THE first organizations asked by Japan to help and were on hand on the Saturday after the quake.  Each large, green ShelterBox is tailored to a disaster but typically contains a disaster relief tent for an extended family, blankets, water storage and purification equipment, cooking utensils, a stove, a basic tool kit, a children’s activity pack and other vital items.

I will be participating in Bloggers Day of Silence tomorrow, Friday, March 18, in order to raise awareness and pay respect to what the people of Japan are suffering through.  If you are interested in donating, please click on the link.

Thank you!