Night Stall Festival
From “Kazenoko Letter” No.428 - September 2013

 By the time this letter is published, Kazenoko Stall Festival will be over. I believe this festival will achieve success as part of a fun and lively seasonal tradition.

 It will be the 33rd festival this year. The first one was held in 1980. Some of you might think, “I was not even born yet.” The Kazenoko Stall Festival took root in this area and now is a famous event, because it has been going on for so long. I think people know our night stall festival is going to be held on the last Saturday of August every year, even though we don’t advertise it much.

 Until 10 years ago, this festival had been held together by our center and the Guardians Association of Jidokan (After School Care Program). Actually, for the last ten years, we have principally held this festival with the support of the Guardians Association. This is for many reasons, but as this was not the original style, we tried to change it about 2 or 3 years ago.

 I heard some happy news this year that some people from the Guardians Association want to take on more responsibilities, not just by helping but by being involved from the beginning. The Fathers’ Group was also created around this time, and they decided to take responsibility for making yakisoba (fried noodles). This group is very proactive, holding regular meetings every month. It feels like the old-time center is making a reappearance.

 There is another fathers’ group that makes yakitori, Japanese style grilled chicken every year. We should probably call them the grandfathers’ group, not the fathers'group. They were guardians at our center about 20-30 years ago. These people use the night stall festival to reunite and make yakitori. It is fascinating that the fathers are connecting through our center in this way. There are many examples of a continuing deep connection between the mothers and the families too.

 This festival is also a reunion for our graduates. It seems to be a good opportunity for these graduates who are now college students or working adults to touch base.

 This night stall festival plays a very important role in connecting people.

Back
Back to the Notes from the Executive Director     Back to the top
Operated by
Social Welfare Corporation SUISEN FUKUSHIKAI
Kazenoko Hoikuen 1-11-8 Komatsu, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka 533-0004
TEL.06-6328-4019  050-3385-0072 FAX.06-6328-4030