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TOKYO, Japan -- As Japan recovers from an earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country, a couple from Draper is trying speed the recovery process along.
When Conan and Cindy Grames agreed to serve as Latter-day Saint missionaries in Tokyo, they thought they would spend their time in an office, managing public communications, not out shopping for victims of disasters.
"The earthquake happened and all of a sudden our lives were turned upside down," said Cindy Grames.
The couple's assignment shifted to include a humanitarian outreach to people in need. They traveled to the tsunami zone to see what they could do.
Quickly, the Grames realized there were massive amounts of people that needed help and the government wasn't meeting their needs. One such place was Kitakami, a remote city in need of drastic help.
That was really rewarding to realize that, hey, we are making a difference in these people's lives.
–Cindy Grames
"It took us a while to find this place. It was so remote. The roads were closed," said Conan Grames. "The first day we came, they didn't know who we were, didn't know how much they could really trust us or what we were up to. But we unloaded a truck of blankets and food and that sort of opened the door -- warmed them up."
Over time, the community evacuation center began to confide to the Grames the people's real needs. One request was for short-sleeved shirts.
"We realized that they had been wearing the same clothing on their backs that they had worn when they ran from the tsunami, so they had not had a change of clothing in five weeks," Cindy Grames said.
So the Grames delivered 300 new shirts to the community.
Journey into Japan:
Journey into Japan: LDS missionaries don T-shirts, get to work
When the sea overruns the earth and washes away all semblance of normal life, as Japan's tsunami did in March, everything changes — even Mormon missionaries' routines."That was really rewarding to realize that, hey, we are making a difference in these people's lives," added Cindy Grames.
Conan Grames is fluent in Japanese, which served him well during their humanitarian mission to the people. Although called to serve a mission, his cause is not to win converts.
"These people have never heard of the church and may never hear of the church," Conan said. "But for us, that doesn't matter. We're just happy to be here -- happy to help."
The Grames have a budget and a mandate: One for all, All for one.
They've "adopted" the Kitakami middle school that was severely damaged by the earthquake. The couple has purchased supplies for the school and has made friends with the principal, who is grateful for the much-needed help.
"It's been a little difficult to find people who are really willing to be helped," Conan Grames said. "When we found somebody we could do it for, they were thrilled and we were just so glad to be able to help."
Conan added: "I'm not sure they even know our name. They've come to know the yellow jackets. When the yellow jackets show up at the door, they're happy."
The LDS Church has adopted those yellow "Helping Hands" vests or T-Shirts to "brand" its humanitarian efforts world-wide.
Email: blindsay@ksl.com
