www.theleaven.com | Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas | Vol. 32, No. 38 may 13, 2011
The Japanese Connection Story and photos by
O
Jill Ragar Esfeld
VERLAND PARK — Six Japanese girls who visited St. Thomas Aquinas High School here just weeks after earthquakes devastated their country have returned home with much more than memories of a different culture. They took back donations to help with their country’s recovery — and with the knowledge that people here are praying for them. “At school, we pray at the beginning of every class,” said Aquinas freshman Camille Nutti, whose family welcomed 17-year-old Ayaka Matsumoto into their home. “We pray at school and in our family, too,” added her sister Claire, who is a junior. And Japan’s recovery was always included in those prayers. So when their Japanese guest arrived and asked what they were doing, Camille explained. In fact, the sisters, from Church of the Ascension Parish in Overland Park, copied out some common Catholic prayers in English so Ayaka could read along and understand them. Ayaka and her companions were visiting as part of a cultural exchange program between St. Thomas Aquinas and its sister school, Yonaga High School in Yonaga, Japan. Ayaka’s unfamiliarity with prayer was not surprising to the Aquinas organizer of the exchange. “They may not have had very much exposure to other religions,” said Spanish teacher Kaye Thompson, who heads the exchange program for the Overland Park high school. Most Japanese practice a combination ShintoBuddhist religion, she said. “They have times like New Year’s Day, when they go to the shrines and temples, but it’s not regular like ours,” she said. “So it’s really interesting for them.” Although they were better at understanding English than speaking it, Ayaka and her fellow exchange students adjusted quickly to their new surroundings, said Thompson. They attended school with their hosts, visited local sights, and were immersed in American culture. One unique experience for the visitors was a slumber party — typically American, except for the menu. “We got sushi from a Japanese steak house,” said Camille.
Turn to “homeland’s’” on page 16
Spanish teacher Kaye Thompson, who heads the Japanese Exchange program at St. Thomas Aquinas in Overland Park, poses with this year’s students visiting from Yonaga High School in Yonaga, Japan. The exchange students dressed in traditional Japanese kimonos for Japan Day at the school. The day’s events raised money to help victims of the earthquake/tsunami in Japan. Pictured are: (back row, from left) Thompson, Ayaka Matsumoto, Mayumi Morita, and Tomomi Wada; (front row, from left): Rikako Kinoshita, Mamiko Vesuzu, and Chihoko Vesuzu.
First communion
Leaven photographers follow two children from Sacred Heart Parish in Ottawa as they make their first Communion.
Stamp out hunger
Donating to a food pantry is now as easy as mailing a letter. Postal workers will be picking up nonperishable food right at your mailbox on May 14. Just leave your items in a sturdy bag next to your mailbox, and letter carriers will pick it up. Last year, letter carriers collected a record-setting 77.1 million pounds of food.
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