Support Our Kids is a New Charity to Help Children Whose Lives Have Been Devastated by The NZ and Tohoku Earthquakes

A new charity organization has sprung up in Japan and they are having a kick off charity ball, dinner, auction and raffle on June 24, 2011.

Yours truly will be there as the auctioneer! (photo below is me, my wife Yuka, and Japanese superstar actor Hiroshi Tachi)

 

Here's some information on this new charity:

Support Our Kids is a new non-profit organization and charity in Japan & New Zealand whose purpose is to raise funds to support children whose lives have been deeply affected have been affected by the disasters in the Tohoku region of Japan and in Christchurch, New Zealand.

 

Former Japanese prime minister Mori san is always helpful to our charity efforts! Thanks Mori san!!!!

Why is this needed? 

While respective governments, many corporations and a number of individuals are generously supporting the ongoing massive cleanup, reconstruction, and humanitarian aid in these regions there is an immediate need to support our kids!

• In the Tohoku Region, damage has been confirmed in 2223 schools, displacing over 5000 students, and the number of students either missing or confirmed dead is over a 1000.
• In Christchurch, NZ 163 Schools damaged, affecting thousands of kids now and forcing 4,800 kids to find schools in other cities. 

The objective of Support Our Kids is to host a charity dinner and auction on June 24, 2011, to raise funds to support the kids whose lives have been sorely affected by these disasters and to further the good relationship between the people of Japan and New Zealand.

The Charity Dinner & Auction:

URL  www.support-our-kids.org 

Date & Time: Friday June 24^th, Doors open at 7:00 p.m. 

           Dinner starts 7:30 - 9:30 pm for a 10:30 p.m. close 

Venue:  ANA Intercontinental Hotel Tokyo, Prominence Ballroom

Guests: 500

Price: Corporate Table:  ¥250,000 yen / table plus tax. (Table of 10 guests)   Individual Tickets:  15,000 yen plus tax. 

Format:  4 course seated dinner, beer, wine and soft drinks. Program include live entertainment, silent auction, live auction and Raffle tickets.

Dress: Business / Business Casual

Contact: For inquiries in English or Japanese please email to: info@support-our-kids.org

Our table (L to R) My wife Yuka, me, Tachi Hiroshi, John Bender, All Japan Rugby Team Coach and former All Blacks superstar, John Kirwan) 

Official Committee Name (委員会正式名称): Support our Kids ～ひとりじゃないよ 委員会

Event Organisers: 

NPO Jidai no Souzou Koubou, Wine In Style Co., Ltd. (iwine.jp) 

Honorary Members:

Japan

1. Tachi Hiroshi (Actor)
2. Mr. Yukiatsu Akizawa (CEO of Heroes’ Edutainment, Chairman of NPO Jidai no Souzou Koubou)
3. Mr. Nobby Mashimo (Vice Chairman Japan Rugby Football Union)
4. Terumasa Hino (Jazz Trumpeteer)
5. Mitsunori Torihara (Chairman, Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd.)
6. Yoshinori Ida (Chairman and Director, Isuzu Motors Limited)
7. Yoshihito Tanabe (President, FM Osaka)
8. Koji Kurusu M.D., Ph.D., (Chairman, Azalee Group)
9. Hirofumi Nishiyama (President, Yomiuri Jyoho Kaihatsu Osaka)
10. Masamitsu Sakurai (Chairman of the Board, Ricoh Company, Ltd.)
11. Katsunori Noda (President, Kyoritsu Printing Group)
12. Naoki Yamazaki (President, Up-Front Works Co., Ltd.) 
13. Yokichi Osato (Supreme Advisor, AMUSE Inc.)
14. Michiomi Fukita (President, Tokyo FM Broadcasting Co., Ltd.)
15. Yasushi Akimoto (Producer)
16. Yasushi Yoshida ( President, Bourbon Corporation)
17. Shinya Sakai ( Owner of Hanshi Tigers and Chairman of Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd)
18. Toru Shimada (President, Rakuten Baseball Inc.)
19. Kotarou Shiba (President, office48 Co., Ltd.)
20. Kojiro Shiraishi (Sailor, Sea Adventurer)
21. Tetsuya Kobayashi (President, Kinki Nippon Railway)
22. Isao Yoshino (Chairman of the Board, Yoshimoto Kogyo Co., Ltd.)
23. Shinichiro Ito (President and CEO, All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd.)
24. Fuminori Kozono (Senior Executive Vice-President, NTT East Corporation) 
25. Masamichi Ujiie (Regional Vice President, Federal Express North Pacific)
26. Mr. Hiromi Tagawa (President & CEO – Japan Travel Bureau)
27. Kaori Ito ( Mayor of Kurashiki City)
28. Tsuneo Yoshida (Chief Director,  Japanese Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect).

Left to right: Me, Mr. John Kirwan (National Coach Japan Rugby Football Team), Tim Williams

New Zealand

1. Mr. Ian Kennedy (New Zealand Ambassador)
2. Mr. John Kirwan (National Coach Japan Rugby Football Team)
3. Tim Williams (Wine In Style Co., Ltd.)
4. Shaun Conroy (NZTE)
5. Ed Overy (General Manager Air New Zealand Japan)
6. Robert Bell (CEO, ANZ Japan) 
7. Yu-Jan Chen (President, Global Sales and Marketing for ZESPRI International Limited) 
8. Makoto Kinjo (President, ANZCO Foods Japan Ltd.)
9. John Hundleby (Market Manager, Japan and Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ltd.)
10. Arun Nangia (General Manager, Japan - National Australia Bank Limited)
11. Mark Kennerley (President, Fonterra Japan Ltd.)

Supporting Organizations:

1. New Zealand Embassy
2. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
3. New Zealand Trade and Enterprise
4. Orange Ribbon. 
5. Tourism New Zealand
6. KEA (Kiwi Ex-Pat Association)
7. Australia New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Japan
8. Japan New Zealand Business Council

Supporting Corporations:

1. Air New Zealand Japan
2. Delta Airlines
3. ANZ Japan
4. ZESPRI International Limited
5. ANZCO Foods Japan Ltd.
6. Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ltd.
7. National Australia Bank Limited
8. Fonterra Japan Ltd.
9. New Zee Company Limited
10. Terrace Downs Resort
11. Bancorp Co., Ltd.
12. Adidas Japan K.K.
13. Plain Corporation
14. Carol Priest Japan
15. Health Beauty Forum
16. Delta Airlines
17. Wazoo.jp

Special Guests: 

1. Tachi Hiroshi (Actor)

1. John Kirwan (National Coach Japan Rugby Football Union)

Besides former prime ministers Mori and Fukuda (pictured here) there were three other former prime ministers in attendance.

Entertainment: 

1. Mr. Terumasa Hino (Jazz Trumpeter)
2. KapaHaka group NgaHau E Wha (Maori performance group)

MC’s :  Junko Akisawa (TBS Announcer), John Kirwan  

Auctioneer: Mike Rogers (Inter FM) 

Auction items:  Over 20 great items including a signed All Blacks Jersey, Golf Trip to New Zealand, signed baseball goods and much much more ! Check out the web site for more details.

Ticketing:

Corporate tables: Email for corporate tables to info@support-our-kids.org  (Tax invoices can be issued on request). Please pay by bank transfer.

Ticketing information also available on www.support-our-kids.org

How the Children are Helped

The funds will be used to support our “Time Out” Home Stay Program for selected Japanese children from the disaster struck regions of Tohoku to stay with caring families in New Zealand.  The funds will be used to sponsor trips which will include cultural & educational exchange activities with children in New Zealand and also to support Cholmondeley Home in Christchurch and other children’s organizations affected by the disasters in Japan and New Zealand. Home Stay arrangements will be made through the organization “Time Out in New Zealand” (http://www.timeoutinnz.org.nz/ja ) which was spontaneously formed by New Zealanders with a love for Japan and the Japanese people. 

Deadlines for us of funds. Set deadline to March 31, 2012.

Handling of Funds:

All proceeds will be handled and administered by the NPO Jidai no Souzou Koubou (http://www.jidai.or.jp) 

Auditor: Independent auditor will produce an audit report no later than May 15, 2012. 

Won't you come out to support this great cause?