2014 Tomodachi Coca-Cola Educational Home Stay Program participants from Tohoku arrive in Atlanta
On July 22th, 60 high school students from the Tohoku region of Japan (Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures) arrived in Atlanta as participants of the 2014 TOMODACHI Coca-Cola Educational Homestay Program.
The students had a chance to experience “The Atlanta in a Day” tour. They visited the Delta Airlines Museum, where a few where chosen to ride in the Delta flight simulator. After a brief lunch, they were whisked away to the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site and then took a tour of the World of Coca-Cola.
The day culminated in a reception at The Coca-Cola Company headquarters where they were greeted by the guests of honor Consul General Sunaga and Mrs. Irene Hirano Inouye, President of the U.S.-Japan Council. CG Sunaga expressed special gratitude to the Coca-Cola Company and Mr. Michael Goltzman, Vice President, International Government Relations & Public Affairs, and his staff who contributed to make this years' program possible. During the welcome ceremony, a video narrated by Chairman Muhtar Kent of the Coca Cola Company was shown. Two of the young ambassadors from Tohoku, Yoshiki Sasaki from Kesen-numa and Natsuko Oikawa from Ofunato gave speeches on their experiences of the unprecedented disaster as well as their dreams. The students were also joined by host family members in Georgia, representatives of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Georgia as well as the Japan America Society of Georgia, among others.
The TOMODACHI Initiative is a public-private partnership, born out of support by the U.S. Government and the U.S.-Japan Council for Japan’s recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake, that invests in the next generation of Japanese and American leaders through educational and cultural exchanges as well as leadership programs.
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The participants of the 2014 Tomodachi Coca-Cola Educational Home Stay Program and the host family members in Georgia
(from left) Vice President Michael Goltzman of Coca-Cola Company, Chairman Inoue and CG Sunaga