Company/Group Donors

(introducing in alphabetical order)

Japan Energy Corporation

By placing collection boxes and posters with the name of the company to branch offices, Japan Energy Corporation encourages employees to donate to the Darunee Scholarship

Employees of the Japan Energy Corporation are positively pursuing social action activities aiming to ‘realize a warm-hearted human society full of energy’, based on a fundamental principle of the company, ‘Creation of Energy’. To help support employee volunteer activities, the company takes part in a campaign of the Minsai Center Japan to collect used telephone cards and miswritten official postcards.

On top of that, the company held a Charity English Conversation Program. Originally, the program began in the office of the Minsai Center, with the support of a foreign college lecturer in June 2003. Later the program was held at the facilities of the company itself, as if it were a catering service provided by the Minsai Center. Twenty-one employees participated in the program in total. Up to now, the program has supported 12 scholarship students in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. In addition, several employees personally became donors to support children in need.

However, there are still many employees who are not familiar with these activities. Because of this, the company works out various methods to let as many employees as possible know about, and get interested in, the activities. Here are three examples of what the company does.

First, the company has prepared a new collection box for used telephone cards and miswritten official postcards. The box was developed with the support of the Minsai Center Japan. It is a folding box that can be sent by mail. When assembled, it is 16 centimeters by 32 centimeters. The scholarship types, information on how miswritten official postcards are converted into money, instructions on how to send the postcards, and the name of the company are printed on the box. The company believes that printing their name on the box makes it much more appealing to employees than if they had only people from outside the company on the box.

Second, the company displays a poster, with two photographs each of four scholarship students in Laos, who have been supported by the campaign for two years. The poster shows the recent growth of the students. The company believes that the poster will help people further their donations beyond only a single telephone card, since the poster can help employees get a sense of supporting the students. The poster is delivered along with the above collection box to branch offices and businesses.

Finally, the company appeals to employees to remind them of the value of 10,000 yen. Referring to the cell phone bills of Japanese youth, the company writes a message to attract the sympathy of parents. In Japan, people can forget that there are children in the world who cannot go to school in spite of their wishes. However, the company hopes that asking parents to notice that their own children’s phone bills can reach or exceed 10,000 yen will help them remember the children who cannot go to school.

Darunee Newsletter #36 (December'04), #38 (June '05)

Kao Corporation (Corporate Communication Department)

Wishes of employees take shape through Darunee Scholarship

The employees of the Kao Corporation began collecting miswritten and unused official postcards in 2001. Since then, by donating the cards to Minsai Center Japan as a Darunee Scholarship, the corporation has helped junior high students in Thailand go on to high school. Last year, 2,217 postcards were sent to the Social Action Department of the corporation. By collecting at least 4,500 miswritten, official postcards, the corporation supported six junior high students for three years each, so they could go on to higher education. The Darunee Scholarship program allows donors to see pictures of the children supported, which helps many employees understand the system to continue activities. Photographs and reports of the supported children are available on the corporation's Intranet so the employees can see them.

Further, the Kao Heart-in-Pocket Club started in April 2004. Employees take part voluntarily, and the purpose of the program is social support. The club chose to support four junior high school students for three years, from August 2005. Interested employees contribute part of their salary every month to the club. Their wish -to make the dreams of junior high students in Thailand come true- has taken shape.

Darunee Newsletter #37 (March '05)

MEDIK Investment Advisory

Fruitful life obtained not only by asking, but also by giving

An article in the Tokyo Shimbun, which our company Head Yujiro Hayami read last year, triggered our support of the Darunee Scholarship. As an investment advisory company, we deliver stock information and give advice on investment to personal investors. Hayami talks to subscribers of our stock information, as well as participants in seminars, on a regular basis about our company’s involvement with the Darunee Scholarship.

“At first, we should give. Then, we can get. The purpose of stock investment is to make money; however, if you persist in making money, it is natural that you will end up losing money. You will also fail and cause conflict by being motivated by desire for wealth. On the contrary, those who are willing to offer money for the good of the public and for other people, even if it is 1 yen or 5 yen, can have room in their hearts and endear themselves to people around them, so that wealth comes as a consequence.”

Many customers approve of his appeal. We collected donations of 2,209,331 yen during nine months, from last July to the end of this March. Moreover, because we regularly distribute the Darunee Scholarship brochure, many customers personally take part in fundraising. It is our great pleasure to know that not only by directly contributing to society as a company, but also by expanding the participation of our members, families, friends, and acquaintances in our fundraising activities, many children can receive an education to create their futures. We would like to continue to take advantage of every opportunity to cooperate fully with the Darunee Scholarship, both as a company and as individuals.

Darunee Newsletter #42 (June '06)

Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (Smile Heart Club)

Support children by enjoying music! Valentine charity concert provides higher education opportunities for children

Every February, music can be heard coming from one of the conference rooms at the Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance building. The Valentine Charity Concert is an annual event started in 1996 by two groups from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance, a music band and the Smile Heart Club. The Smile Heart Club is a volunteer group focused on making social contributions. Tickets cost 500 yen, with all sales donated to the Darunee Scholarship Program. The entry fee includes one drink as well, the cost of which is covered by the band.

All the employees are very much aware that 30,000 yen is enough money for a child to go on to junior high school for three years, so those who can’t attend the concert send money through the intranet. The donations translate into scholarship support for students in Southeast Asia. Profiles of the students the money supports, along with their photos and comments about their dreams for the future, have encouraged the band members to provide continuous support. So far, they have provided support for 50 scholarship students.

Even in 2001, when a company merger almost led to the cancellation of the concert, Mitsui Sumitomo employees were able to support seven children.

The 2005 concert

The 2005 charity concert marked the tenth anniversary of the event, and was commemorated by inviting Wanchai Yubati, a 22-year-old graduate and former scholarship student from Thailand to take part. He currently works part-time and goes to a polytechnic school on government student loans. Wanchai hopes to become a computer engineer to support his parents as well as to contribute to his country's development.

During the concert, Wanchai extended his gratitude to participants of the concert, and at times was moved to tears while being comforted by hugs from the leader of the band. Wanchai also sang a song named "Our school," a Thai song, and "Subaru," a Japanese popular song. He had a great time.

Members of the band looked back on the past decade and said that although they sometimes felt pressure from their work and wanted to cancel the event, the profiles of the scholarship students always encouraged them to continue. To date, they have supported 91 students.

The concert was very meaningful and all the participants reaffirmed the importance of their continuous support through this event. Moreover, the history of this event and the activities of the music band were reported in the newspaper and because of that, many readers of the paper became Darunee Scholarship Program donors.

The scholarship program changed my life (by Wanchai Yucati)

When I found out that I could move onto junior high school with the help of the scholarship, I felt a deep appreciation for my donors, who gave me the opportunity even though I am not their child or grandson. I could not have made it this far without the scholarship and can’t imagine what kind of life I would have had without it.

Darunee Newsletter #26 (June '02) & #38 (June '05)

Yamaha Gospel Choir Group

Sharing our joy of singing

Every year before summer, we begin preparation for two big annual events: a concert called “Yamaha Gospel Night” held in Tokyo in September, and the charity concert supporting the Darunee Scholarship Program. This year’s charity concert will be held July 30. We are very excited about this year’s concert, because we are planning to sing along with live music at a bigger concert hall.

The concert began in 2003 with members of the Yamaha Music School in Chiba, Niigata, Ibaraki, and Gunma, at the request of our coach from Yamaha Music School, who used to play the lead role in Starlight Express in London. The coach’s idea of making social contributions by sharing our joy of singing encouraged the members to participate in the concert to support the Darunee Scholarship Program. The members supported 10 scholarship students in Laos with the donations gathered from the past two years’ concerts. All preparations are done by staff, and the hour-and-a-half concert is free. After the concert, all the guests donate money and miswritten, official postcards to be redeemed for cash as donations.

Highlight of 2005 concert

Since the size of the concert hall was more than triple that of previous years, and the weather was relentlessly hot, all our members were apprehensive about attendance for the concert. Although the concert hall was not packed, we could see that guests looked happy as they joined in and clapped their hands in rhythm with the music.

Toward the end of the concert, staff and volunteers from Minsai Center introduced the Darunee Scholarship Program and our coach, of the Yamaha Gospel Choir said, “We are fully enjoying our peaceful time; however, if we missed out on not only the pleasure of going to school but also a sense of peace, it would be very sad.” He also brought his own miswritten official postcards and telephone cards for donations.

Our coach’s speech moved participants, including all the audience members and performers. Cash donations for the day reached a record of 171,278 yen (about 1,532 American dollars). A part of the cash will provide four scholarships for students in Laos. Since a great number of miswritten postcards cards and telephone cards were also collected, all our members were full of gratitude for the co-operation of all the concert participants. Furthermore, the event received more coverage from media, such as local bulletin companies, FM radio stations, and CATV companies, than in the past two years. Everyone is looking forward to the next concert.

Darunee Newsletter #38 (June '05) & #39 (September '05)