Final evening of preparations for Ishinomaki

I am into my final evening of preparations for my departure tomorrow for Sendai and onto Ishinomaki where we will do volunteer work to assist with the clean up and recovery after the 3/11 earthquake and tsunami. Amidst all the preparations this week, I realized my new white hard hat was a blank canvas and in need of some personalization. I wanted to create something that was appropriate for the situation and did not inject too much frivolity. We will have to see how long the decals hold up in real world conditions. The message under the flags reads: 頑張れ石巻！(Hang in there Ishinomaki!)

I am very much looking forward to the adventure. I have been touched by all of the positive reactions from the Japanese on my trip. It has been a mixture of curiosity, interest and respect that a foreigner would make time to help. Certainly not my motivation to turn any attention on myself but I hope it helps to get more people involved in the recovery efforts. With all of the preparation work, I am hopeful to utilize the experience and equipment for a return trip.

I will do my best for Japan.