Jeff and I were able to reach our contacts in Japan this weekend and thankfully everyone is alive and well. We were based out of Tsuruoka for half the trip which is west of Sendai, the area hit hardest. 
I was actually browsing through my Japan photos the night before the quake and and making mental plans for the next trip. It might be because I spent a month there, or maybe because while I was there, I found a calm and peace within myself that I've been missing. Whatever the reason, I feel a connection to the country, the people, and their way of life. I want to go back now. I hope to be able to send some supplies with a friend heading to Japan in the next couples of weeks.
If you are interested in making a donation to aid the relief efforts, here are some resources courtesy of CNN:
Follow World Vision’s blog for updates, and visit its website or text “4japan” to 20222 to send a $10 donation to the group. It will show up on your next mobile phone bill.
The American Red Cross also accepts donations via text message. Text "redcross" to 90999, and you can make a $10 donation to the organization.
The Salvation Army, which has had a presence in Japan since 1895, is sending a team to Sendai to assess damages and hopes to provide food, water and other necessities. In Tokyo, the Salvation Army opened its main building to house and feed commuters who were unable to reach their homes.
Save the Children is sending an emergency team to assist its staff in Japan.Donations to the group's Children's Emergency Fund will help preserve the welfare of young ones, who "are always the most vulnerable in a disaster," Eiichi Sadamatsu in central Tokyo said in a statement.
Globalgiving.com, another aid organization that allows donors to select the causes they want to support – including climate change, economic development, human rights and natural disaster relief – has established a Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. GlobalGiving will disburse funds to organizations providing aid and relief to victims.
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