First memorial service in 55 years to be held by former Motoyanagi-machi residents at the site of their hometown, now Peace Park, with renewed pledge to peace
Jul. 22, 2000
People with ties to Motoyanagi-machi, a town completely destroyed by the atomic bomb and now part of the Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward, Hiroshima, will hold a memorial service on August 6 at the former site of the town for the first time in 55 years. The organizers, which consisted of “Ryuseikai” (represented by Ryozo Ueda), an association of former residents, and concerned individuals from the Hiroshima branch of Morinaga Shokuryo Kogyo KK. (now Morinaga & Co., Ltd.), whose office was in Motoyanagi-machi, had a meeting on July 21 in Hiroshima City and discussed a plan, saying: “Let’s gather on the last anniversary of the atomic bombing in the 21st century, console the souls of the victims, and renew our pledge to peace.”
Seven members, including 84-year-old Mr. Ueda who has run a soft goods wholesaler in Naka Ward since his father’s generation, and 80-year-old Satoru Hisaka, a retired Morinaga employee, met to talk about the program for the memorial service and the content of the social gathering. They sent an invitation letter to about 80 former Motoyanagi-machi residents, whose whereabouts are known, as well as the surviving families of residents and Morinaga employees. Forty-one people, some from Tokyo and Okayama, plan to attend the service.
In their replies, the surviving families wrote about their feelings toward the deceased and shared their latest news: “My grandmother’s remains were not found. My mother and I used to pray with our hands together in the park on August 6, when she was still well,” or “I give visitors to the Peace Memorial Museum a tour as a peace volunteer.”
Taeko Morikawa, a 73-year-old homemaker from Nishino-cho in Takehara City and one of the organizers, lost her parents. She said: “More than half a century has passed since the atomic bombing. Generations of the bereaved family members have changed, and many of them I would meet for the first time. I want to tell them that our town used to be where the Peace Memorial Park is today, and that so many people died tragic deaths.”
Motoyanagi-machi, a community of about 40 houses and businesses facing the Honkawa River, formed a corner of the bustling downtown of the delta of Hiroshima. Around 1970, a few former residents established “Ryuseikai” and began making records of their hometown, which was destroyed by the atomic bomb and whose name was erased when the park was constructed. They also continue to hold social gatherings. When the Chugoku Shimbun published an article in May featuring the damage to Motoyanagi-machi as part of its series: “Records of Hiroshima: Photograph of Dead Speak,” Ryuseikai members contacted the Hiroshima branch of Morinaga and decided to hold the first memorial service. For more details, please contact Akira Yamase at 082-878-0543.
(Originally published on July 22, 2000)
Seven members, including 84-year-old Mr. Ueda who has run a soft goods wholesaler in Naka Ward since his father’s generation, and 80-year-old Satoru Hisaka, a retired Morinaga employee, met to talk about the program for the memorial service and the content of the social gathering. They sent an invitation letter to about 80 former Motoyanagi-machi residents, whose whereabouts are known, as well as the surviving families of residents and Morinaga employees. Forty-one people, some from Tokyo and Okayama, plan to attend the service.
In their replies, the surviving families wrote about their feelings toward the deceased and shared their latest news: “My grandmother’s remains were not found. My mother and I used to pray with our hands together in the park on August 6, when she was still well,” or “I give visitors to the Peace Memorial Museum a tour as a peace volunteer.”
Taeko Morikawa, a 73-year-old homemaker from Nishino-cho in Takehara City and one of the organizers, lost her parents. She said: “More than half a century has passed since the atomic bombing. Generations of the bereaved family members have changed, and many of them I would meet for the first time. I want to tell them that our town used to be where the Peace Memorial Park is today, and that so many people died tragic deaths.”
Motoyanagi-machi, a community of about 40 houses and businesses facing the Honkawa River, formed a corner of the bustling downtown of the delta of Hiroshima. Around 1970, a few former residents established “Ryuseikai” and began making records of their hometown, which was destroyed by the atomic bomb and whose name was erased when the park was constructed. They also continue to hold social gatherings. When the Chugoku Shimbun published an article in May featuring the damage to Motoyanagi-machi as part of its series: “Records of Hiroshima: Photograph of Dead Speak,” Ryuseikai members contacted the Hiroshima branch of Morinaga and decided to hold the first memorial service. For more details, please contact Akira Yamase at 082-878-0543.
(Originally published on July 22, 2000)
