SHICHIGAHAMA, MIYAGI PREFECTURE - Visiting Singapore President Tony Tan Keng Yam visited a nursery school in Miyagi prefecture on Monday (Dec 5), rebuilt with Singapore donations after it was devastated in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disasters.
Dr Tan, who arrived via the Shinkansen bullet train, spent an hour interacting with teachers and children at the Shichigahama Toyama Nursery School, dubbed the Lion Park in recognition of the Singaporean connection.
About 90 children aged six and below are enrolled at the 1,000 sq m school, which was first opened in 1975. The new site, reopened in 2013, is built on elevated ground and can be used as an evacuation centre in the case of an emergency.
Mayor of Shichigahama Town Kaoru Terasawa said: "We do appreciate very much the response from the Singapore Government and Singaporeans from every walk of life, who have made a huge difference to our children and our lives."
Conveying his hopes that the children can be a "bridge for both countries", he said: "We owe great gratitude - children are now smiling and have returned to the nursery school and are very actively pursuing their lives."
Students on Monday performed two Christmas carols - We Wish You A Merry Christmas and Jingle Bells - for Dr Tan. They also presented him with a drawing of a caricature of their faces.
They also sang a Happy Birthday song for Mrs Mary Tan, who celebrates her birthday on Monday.
The Singapore Red Cross raised $35.7 million in disaster relief donations after the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami that devastated north-eastern Japan, in one of the Republic's largest ever relief efforts.
Dr Tan has, on this trip, been citing this as an example of stellar people-to-people bonds between the two countries, including at a state banquet hosted by Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, and also at a banquet hosted by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Of the funds raised, $5 million went towards reconstructing the Shichigahama Toyama Nursery School.
Singapore, too, left its mark on three other reconstruction projects, all of which have been completed.
Some $11.1 million - the largest sum earmarked for a single project - was spent for a multi-purpose community hall in Rikuzentakata City in Iwate Prefecture.
The site integrates the city's police and fire departments to enhance the city's disaster preparedness, and also serves as a disaster relief centre. One of its halls is named the Singapore Hall to honour Singapore's contributions.
Another $1.16 million went towards the Taro Support Centre in Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, which provides eldercare and rehabilitation services to about 1,700 elderly and disabled people.
The final project was the Isobe Community Centre in Soma City in Fukushima prefecture, for which $2.1 million was spent. Rebuilt on elevated ground, the centre now organises recreation lessons including taichi and harmonica.
The rest of the funds went towards the support of immediate relief and recovery efforts, as well as the upgrading of two libraries and an after-school activity centre, and the establishment of a scholarship fund, among other things.
Dr Tan, who ends his state-visit to Japan on Tuesday, will return to Tokyo later on Monday.
