In Japanese culture the making of origami, or a figure created out of folding a flat piece of paper, is often used as a type of prayer. When someone is sick or dying, they are sent paper cranes. The idea is that when making origami cranes for every fold, one person receives the thoughts and blessings of the folder. The ultimate number of cranes is 1,000 and is said in Japanese legend to grant one wish to the recipient, such as long life or recovery from illness.
Since the record-breaking earthquake hit Japan on March 11, and the following tsunami and nuclear power plant explosion, DePauw students may not have been folding cranes, but there certainly have been efforts to help relief assistance in a Japan that has been devastated by disasters.
"When something catastrophic happens, we try to do the best we can," said sophomore Naeem Muhammed, President of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, one organization which is contributing to the cause.
Alpha Phi Alpha has a national voter registration project performed regularly, but the men have decided to use part of the event this year as a chance to raise funds by selling raffle tickets. For the past two weeks, they have been tabling in the Hub, out at events around DePauw and selling raffle tickets on campus. The registration event ends today, and students can purchase a ticket for $1, two for $5, or 15 for $10.
"We are in a predicament as college students with money, but every dollar counts. The people of Japan are in a terrible struggle," Muhammed said.
Kappa Delta Pi, the international education honors society, is working with non-for-profit group Soles for Souls to collect shoes for victims in Japan. Boxes for donations are located in the Hub and the second floor of the Julian Science and Mathematics Center. DePauw's Kinesiology club had also been collecting shoes during the year and are now sending those shoes as part Kappa Delta Pi's efforts.
In the upcoming weeks, a group of students, along with the International Student Association will be hosting a series of events to raise funds.
"For some people, [the disasters] may be something on the other side of the world, but it's crucial that we help," said freshman Mami Oyamada, a Japanese native who is part of the effort behind the events.
Starting April 4, wristbands will be sold in the Hub, followed by subsequent events in the following days and weeks. All proceeds will be donated to the Japan-America Society of Indiana.
"It is important [that we help] because although none of us were directly affected, there are people on this campus with connections to Japan," Oyamada said.
One of these people is assistant professor of music Yoko Shimazaki-Kilburn. Born in Hamamatsu, Japan, Shimazaki-Kilburn's parents and other relatives still reside in Japan. She explained that initially with the difficulty to contact anyone in the country, there was a period where "it was very scary."
Shimazaki-Kilburn has been active in her community in Muncie, Ind., participating in local fundraising events, but she stressed that helping Japan goes farther than financial donations.
"I don't think we should expect people to drop everything and donate everything, but help can be something like voicing their support via places like Indiana-Japan Society," she said.
"The more [the people of Japan] hear from other people with words of encouragement and support, the faster they can recover," Shimazaki-Kilburn continued. "It's like the power of prayer. They've lost everything and their hope. We can at least give them the hope of rebuilding."