March, 2007 Issue（No2）
RIFA　Top Koryu　Top Japanese

Friday, December 1, 2006 High time with the Cooks 　Mrs. Elycia Cook was born in Detroit, Michigan and spent a year in the Japan Center for Michigan University in Hikone during her college days. Since then she came to like Shiga Prefecture and came again and stayed for a year as an ALT of Kokusai Joho High School in Ritto. After that she stayed in Tokyo for four years and returned to the U.S. She moved to Colorado and got married one year later to Mr. Byron Cook whom she had met two days after she had arrived at Colorado. Mr. Cook came to know Japan through Mrs. Cook and earnestly want to live in Japan. They were determined to place in Hikone with their two cute girls last summer. 　The couple developed merry talks. She is so amusing that the audience burst into laughter at the story of her experience in a public bath. Can you see the letters on the pictures? On the chocolate they brought for a souvenir was printed the name of our association, Ritto International Friendship Association, and their names. The audience was moved in chorus. They concluded their presentation by offering a draw and giving Colorado T-shirts away. With such a nice variety of their presentation, the audience forgot that time passed. 　The number of Japanese people living in Colorado is 11500, larger than that of the Native Americans. Among them are 4470 Japanese nationals. There are the Japan and Colorado Association, Japanese schools, the Rocky Times whose articles are written in Japanese, Aiki-dojo named Nihonkan, and Sakura Square where people can experience various Japanese cultures such as flower arranging, bon dances, calligraphy, tea ceremony, sushi, and takoyaki. A ceremony cerebrates the 35 anniversary at Sakura Square this year. The temperature changes extremely in a day in Colorado. Even if it is below zero in the early morning, the temperature rises to 10 degree before noon and 20 degree in the afternoon. Their presentation let the audience feel close to Colorado that has many sister cities in Japan. 　A few days later, thanks to two of the audience, Mr. and Mrs. Miyagi who are RIFA members, Mrs. Cook fulfilled her wish to let her daughters wear kimono.

Acomplished her mission in Brazil

Two years ago, Miss Chikako Takemura was dispatched in São Miguel Arcanjo, 180 kilometers southwest of São Paulo, Brazil, as a Japanese language instructor on the project of Japanese-Brazilian Society Volunteer by JICA, the Japan International Cooperation Agency. She fulfilled her duty and came back in January. She paid a courtesy visit to Ritto Mayor to report on it. 　While she was a voluntary Japanese instructor in RIFA, she decided to study how to teach Japanese in real earnest, applied for the project, and passed the test. In the town where a great number of Japanese –Brazilians live, she taught Japanese in the Japanese school on weekdays and participated in events of Japanese language and culture at other places on Saturdays and Sundays. 　Although she is slightly-built, she never got sick, and says she wanted to stay more in Brazil. She admires that people are proud of themselves because they are Japanese-Brazilians. She is also grateful that they did not discriminate her because she is Japanese, on the contrary, they treated her well because she is Japanese, which she thinks that the first generations have handed down the spirits to generations. She appreciates it and told that she would like to teach Japanese to Brazilian children whose parents have come to work in Japan and work for them by assisting them.

March, 2007 Issue（No2）

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