Foreigners volunteer to help in Rikuzentakata's "second homeland"

Excerpt from Iwate Nippo, May 28, 2011

Four foreign volunteers in Japan began volunteering in Rikuzentakata on the 27th. The volunteers are part of the activities of APFS (Tokyo, representative: Jotaro Kato), an NPO that supports the lives of foreigners living in Japan. They worked hard removing rubble and shoveling out mud. The four volunteers, from Pakistan, Iran, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines, visited damaged homes in Takada-cho, Rikuzentakata, and removed broken furniture and household items. In the midst of the dust, they worked silently and loaded chests of drawers and other items onto trucks. Most of the participants were from the Kanto region, and have lived in Japan for more than 22 years. San Miguel Dante (49), from the Philippines, from Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture, said enthusiastically, "The damage is worse than what you see on TV. Japan is my second home country. I want to help even if I'm just a little." Their volunteering will continue until the 30th.
[Photo: Foreign volunteers in Japan wearing helmets and masks work hard to remove rubble from private homes, 27th, Takata Town, Rikuzentakata City]