INJM’s History

Its Not Just Mud was formed in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11th, 2011. As the requirements in the Tohoku region change, so do the roles and structure of INJM. Here is a brief outline of how we started and have evolved since the beginning.

Small footprints.. big steps

Response post-tsunami: June 2011 – September 2011

INJM started as an informal collection of volunteers working from the Senshu university emergency campgrounds in Ishinomaki. One of the first volunteers, Jamie El-Banna, came to Tohoku on a week-long volunteer trip to Higashi Matsushima (Miyagi Prefecture) in May 2011. Returning to his work in Osaka as an English teacher, he felt the need to get back to Tohoku and subsequently quit his job to do exactly that. With minimal support, mostly from friends and personal savings, he returned to Ishinomaki with the intention of staying there long-term.

He started this website (initially as a blog) relating an off-the-cuff, wryly humorous account of volunteer life. Soon some of his friends came over to Ishinomaki to volunteer “with him”.. and then their friends, and friends of friends. Before long, INJM became an informal group of volunteers camping out at the Senshu University grounds, helping various other more established local groups. Jamie and a core group of other long-term volunteers became a source of information, support and organization for individual and even big groups of volunteers wanting to help. These blog entries help capture the situation from those initial days of volunteering, [Day 5], [The hero in the world].

From left to right: INJM campsite after a particularly strong typhoon. Giving the morning briefing to a volunteer group from the University of Tokyo. Enjoying some relax time after a hard day's work.

By the end of September the INJM “campsite” was an eclectic collection of 15-20 tents, a supply tent, a kitchen tent and solar lights! Jamie was joined by Marci McComish, Masae Ishikawa and Manish Sreenivasa, key board members of INJM who were instrumental in deciding to make INJM an official NPO. Soon they were joined by many others, some of whom are continuing members of the group. At the end of September the Senshu University grounds were closed to volunteers and INJM had to find a new home. Jamie put out a request on Twitter, and several retweets later we got offered the excellent house that currently serves as the INJM HQ, and this started a brand new chapter in INJM’s story.

October 2011 – present

INJM was offered the free use of a large house in Watanoha to continue its volunteer activities. The original owners moved to another house and were happy for us to use it.. INJM will be forever indebted to their generosity. The house is located close to the seafront and suffered significant tsunami damage. However, some of it was already cleaned up and the INJM crew did the rest in record time! Sometime during our cleanup efforts the owners of the neighboring house noticed us and offered the use of their house as well. Around the same time we were donated a car, a small truck, futons, blankets, tools, wheelbarrows and many other essential articles for volunteer work. These two houses serve as the INJM headquarters capable of housing 30-40 volunteers in a pinch, and provides some basic amenities like electricity, hot water, kitchen facilities etc.

From left to right: Fixing the tsunami damage to HQ. Preparing the INJM parking space. The two houses donated to INJM. Hosting a large student group from Sofia University.

INJM is a young organization and our scope is expanding unbelievably fast as people get to know and appreciate our work. This history page will undoubtedly need updating as we take on major projects and cross important milestones. But our hope is that by remembering our modest beginning from one tent in a field, we will also remember our commitment to helping people at the grass-roots, first and foremost.