A spirit-filled night for Japan relief at DTSS

A fundraiser for Japan relief comes to David Thompson Secondary School.

It will be time for a dinner and a show at David Thompson Secondary School (DTSS) as organizers bring people together to support the relief efforts in Japan.

One of the people setting up the event is Christopher Tihor.

“There will be a Japanese food dinner in the high school cafeteria at 6 p.m. followed by a showing of the Oscar winning Japanese animation “Spirited Away” in the school theatre at 6:45 p.m.,” said Tihor. “The food will be Japanese cuisine (including sushi).  We thought it would be great for those coming out to the event to be able to experience a little bit of the culture of the country they are supporting. “Spirited Away” is the highest grossing Japanese animation of all time and is written and directed by the renowned Hayao Miyazaki.  It is a family-suitable film.  We really wanted an event that the whole family could come out to.”

The event is being organized and run by DTSS students and teachers along with the DTSS chef training teachers and students who have volunteered to organize the dinner.

“This event is being held in conjunction with other fundraising events at the school. I think that everyone at the school was shocked by the devastation of the earthquake and tsunami and there was an immediate response of students and staff who wanted to do something to help,” Tihor said.

Tihor is hopeful people will see that they can come out to the evening and help people who desperately need it in Japan.

“The road to recovery for those in Japan who lost their family members, homes, or livelihoods will be a long and difficult one.  A huge number of people have literally lost everything.  As those who have been following the news will know, those people who were living in the vicinity of the Fukushima nuclear power plant have not even been able to return to the area and may not be able to do so for many more months.

“As someone who has family in Japan, I can definitely say that it means a lot to people there to see that people in other parts of the world care about what they are going through and wanting to help,” he said.

Tickets for the dinner are available at The Book Bar or the high school front office. The cost is $12 for adults and $8 for children under 12.

Admission to the movie will be by donation.