Bicycles and notebooks are presented to Cambodian children in Phnom Penh on Nov. 13. (Provided by the Rotary Club of Hamamatsu-West)

Operators of companies in Shizuoka on mission to support Cambodia's poor children

Asahi Shimbun | 25 November 2014

HAMAMATSU, Shizuoka Prefecture--When Masahiro Sano traveled to Cambodia in 1996 on a sightseeing trip to historical ruins, what touched him more was the nation's recent history, seeing towns and schools that remained devastated from the Pol Pot regime.

He also saw Cambodians who had neither a place to sleep nor access to electricity.

In 1997, Sano, the owner of a trucking company in Fuji, Shizuoka Prefecture, began to send such items as soccer balls and candy to orphanages in Cambodia. In 1999, he donated 3 million yen ($25,450) to construct a new elementary school.

Sano is leading an effort by local business leaders in Shizuoka Prefecture to support the poor and destitute, particularly children, in Cambodia, which is still recovering from civil wars that raged from the 1970s through the 1980s.

Since 2006, the group has shipped a total of 14,000 bicycles to Cambodia for children to use to go to school. They have also sent school supplies for orphans and other children, with some of the business people also becoming foster parents.

“There are children who can go to school if they have bicycles,” said Sano, 69. “As bicycles are still in short supply, I am going to continue this activity.”

As for the bicycles sent to Cambodia, many were found abandoned and donated by a Tokyo-based public organization called Jitensha Chushajo Seibi Center (Center to construct parking spaces for bicycles). Sano is shouldering the costs to transport them in Cambodia.

In early November, a ceremony to present bicycles and school supplies, including notebooks, was held at the Aspeca Orphanage in Phnom Penh. The gifts were given to the orphans that live in the facility and children in the surrounding areas.

The presentation ceremony was the 36th of its kind for Sano.

The children were delighted with the bicycles and notebooks, he said.

In 2007, the Rotary Club of Hamamatsu-West joined Sano in his efforts. This year, it sent 800 notebooks and 800 pencils to the Aspeca Orphanage for the children in the area.

Norihiko Takimoto, 78, a member of the Rotary Club, has served as a foster parent since 2007. For almost eight years now, he has sent $240 (28,300 yen) to a Cambodian woman every year as part of a scholarship.

The woman, now 24, aims to become a medical doctor. She will complete her doctoral studies in two years.

When Takimoto traveled to Cambodia in early November, the young woman could speak a little Japanese. He plans to continue to offer the scholarship to her for two more years through the orphanage.

“As I felt her growth, I became pleased,” he said. “I want to support young people who are making efforts to achieve their dreams.”

Takimoto is urging other members of the Rotary Club to become foster parents. At present, 13 Rotary Club members are serving as foster parents for 15 children.