TOMODACHI Summer Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program Alumni Reunion
On May 16, 2014, 16 alumni from the TOMODACHI Summer Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program met with Coca-Cola Japan employees and several staff from the TOMODACHI Initiative at Coca-Cola Headquarters for a reunion.
The TOMODACHI Summer Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program provides high school students from areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011 with the opportunity to take part in a cultural exchange in the United States. Through this program, Coca-Cola and TOMODACHI are supporting students, who will lead the next generation, by broadening their knowledge and experience and by providing them with an opportunity to learn about different cultures and people.
In this meeting, Noriko Yusa (2012 program participant from Iwate prefecture), Yuuri Tabata (2013 program participant from Miyagi prefecture) and Akihiko Tateo (2013 program participant from Fukushima prefecture) gave speeches about their experiences in the United States and how the program had impacted in their lives. Yuuri Tabata talked about her wonderful homestay experience in Burlington, Vermont and presented her current project named, “Action is a Message Project,” an online resource that features students’ writings about their experiences from the Great East Japan Earthquake and informs viewers about disaster-prevention techniques.
The reunion was planned by alumni from the TOMODACHI Summer Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program in order for participants from both the 2012 and 2013 to meet. Coca-Cola Japan supported this alumni reunion in order to engage all the participants. It was an opportunity not only for students to meet each other but to also build networks with Coca-Cola Japan employees and the TOMODACHI staff.
Reiko Takahashi, an employee of Coca-Cola Japan who attended the meeting stated, “It was a great opportunity for us to meet alumni from TOMODACHI Summer Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program. By listening each one of their experiences in the U.S., I learned and was so proud to know how our company, Coca-Cola Japan, supported opening up new horizons for all participants through this program. I hope we can continue supporting them in the future.”
