Etsuko, Yuji and Masaki Steele are adding the nearly $2,000 raised through coin drives at the children’s schools to the Chattanooga Japanese Community Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund, to be sent to the Japanese Red Cross through the Consulate-General in Japan.
Photo by Emily CrismanThe Steele family, which moved to Signal Mountain from Japan 12 years ago, has raised nearly $2,000 for the Chattanooga Japanese Community Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.
“Around 30 Japanese families in Chattanooga decided we should do something for Japan,” said Etsuko Steele.
Steele and her sons Masaki, 7, and Yuji, 5, made origami cranes to give to students who made donations at the coin drives they held at Thrasher Elementary, where Masaki attends, and Yuji’s preschool, Signal Mountain Presbyterian Day School.
The Steeles raised $1,368.33 through the coin drive at Thrasher, and collected $200 in just two hours through another drive at UTC.
“One first-grader said, ‘I want to donate for Japan, but didn’t bring any coins,’ and that just touched my heart,” said Steele, whose brother-in-law lives 30 miles from the nuclear power plant in Fukushima.