The Ofunato Sakaricho Tanabata Festival Support Project 2023 was held in Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture from Wednesday, August 2 to Wednesday, August 9. In April 2012, Ritsumeikan University concluded a disaster recovery cooperation agreement with Ofunato City, and since 2016, the two parties have been collaborating on a range of initiatives based on a comprehensive cooperation agreement concluded that year.

This project, which has continued since 2012, is one of these initiatives. Students work with local residents on the Sakaricho Tanabata Festival, which is held annually in the Sakaricho district of Ofunato City in early August. They are involved in every step from preparation to clean-up, and they help run the festival. (The festival was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the students planned and implemented a photo exhibit.)

The participating students worked on decorating the Sakari Chuo-dori shopping street, where the Tanabata Festival is held, by erecting bamboo poles and hanging tanzaku (colored paper strips). They built floats and practiced the accompanying musical pieces with the local residents in each neighborhood to which they were assigned. They also visited Ofunato City Hall and sites where tsunami damage is still evident to learn more about the situation since the disaster as well as future plans for community development.

On the day of the Tanabata Festival, amidst the vivid bamboo decorations, the students joined the parade of floats from each neighborhood and enjoyed dancing on the street with the local residents.
Commenting on the experience, one participating student said, “Seeing the lines indicating where the tsunami reached in Sakaricho and the seawalls made me realize that the Tanabata Festival is not something to be taken for granted and what a joyous occasion it is to be able to hold the festival.” Another student remarked, “I experienced first-hand how the whole town of Sakaricho unites for the Tanabata Festival, and it made me realize this is something that is irreplaceable for everyone living in the community.”