April 27 - Have you ever read the American children's story "Daddy-Long-Legs"? I remember reading the book when I was young.

Recently, I learned about a Japanese non-profit organization that has taken its name from that novel: the Ashinaga (or "long legs") Foundation. This group provides emotional care and financial support for children who have lost one or both parents. The NPO's representatives told me that 80,000 orphans have received Ashinaga's support over the past 40 years with the majority of the funding coming from donations of private citizens. They are even working outside Japan in places like Haiti.

The group is led by Mr. Yoshiomi Tamai, founder and president of Ashinaga, and includes two orphaned university students. One is Ms. Ritah Nabukenya from Uganda. She has been studying international relations at Waseda University and recently returned from a one-year exchange program in China. The other is Mr. Hiroaki Nagaoka, a senior at Nihon University majoring in physical geography, who also just returned from an overseas study program in Mexico. Ritah told me she hopes to return to Uganda and help her country. Hiroaki said he wants to study earthquakes in order to help with disaster prevention and disaster mitigation. Although these students have both suffered the loss of a parent, they have been able with the support of Ashinaga to focus on new goals in life and pursue their dreams.

In 2012 we will see the 100th anniversary of the original publication of Jean Webster's novel "Daddy-Long-Legs." The Ashinaga Foundation plans to use the anniversary year as a new starting point to expand their activities in Africa, Asia, the United States and Japan. Their activities remind me of the expression, "Think globally, act locally." What a wonderful example of a Japanese NPO that started its work at home but has developed a global reach, giving new hope to many young people along the way.

Until next time,

Jim