Ajishirahama bathing beach to open!: volunteers clean up bathing beach

It is on July 19 that Ajishirahama bathing beach will open. That means that three bathing beaches in all will open this summer including Tsukihama in Higashimatsuhima city and Oshima in Kesennuma city that reopened last summer. Both on July 6th and the 7th, JEN Tohoku reconstruction assistance volunteers worked on cleaning up Ajishirahama bathing beach and weeding mountain trails together with local residents.

【Ajishirahama is an island with a circumference of 18 km and a population of 300. The land shown at right in the picture is the Oshika Peninsula.】


【Volunteers were divided into removing sea wracks group and weeding group.】



On the first day, volunteers work on weeding mountain trails and removing sea wracks on the beach. Local residents say the beach used to be an excellent place for children to do fishing before the disaster but the land subsidence due to the disaster has completely changed the island's coastal environment.

【Gatsukou of Ajishima Island, accommodations, is a reuse facility of closed junior high school.】


Having done the day's work, the volunteers had a get-to-know-you party with islanders at Gatsukou of Ajishima Island. Island life, marine products and this island's future the volunteers heard from and talked with the islanders about.

【Day two, some seventy including islanders assembled in the beach cleanup.】


On the second day, about seventy people including islanders worked on cleaning up Ajishirahama beach, that making the beach full of life.

【A photo showing people cleaning up the beach】



Volunteer activities in Ajishima Island are just beginning. JEN believes that it's necessary to look for a better future of the island, through deepening dialogues with islanders, continued activities there. The activity in Ajishima Island becomes two-days-and-one-night program because of ferry limitations. The next activity is scheduled for August 11th and the 12th.
We are really looking forward to your participation.

【Do come back again!】




【JEN is now accepting donations for the reconstruction of Tohoku. Your help would be very much appreciated. DONATE HERE】

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Have a pleasure of listening to JEN's radio program broadcasting from Tohoku via Ishinomaki Radio Station. Listening to our program, you can learn Ishinomaki's present state and about JEN. For more about our program, "Sukidaltsucha ❤Ishinomaki by JEN"(I Love Ishinoaki by JEN), click here).
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