Wednesday, September 7, 2022
September has arrived, and the golden ears of rice are swaying in the wind ahead of the harvest. For the first time in three years, the 2022 Hokuryu Town Respect for the Aged Day event was held at the Hokuryu Town Senior Citizens Welfare Center on Tuesday, September 6th from 10:30am.
- 1 Reiwa 4 Hokuryu Town Respect for the Aged Day Event (Hokuryu Town Senior Citizens Welfare Center)
- 2 88th birthday celebration money presentation, permanent resident merit award, etc.
- 3 Attractions
- 4 Three cheers: Hokuryu Town Social Welfare Council Chairman Yamamoto Takeshi
- 5 Seeing off
- 6 A variety of celebratory items
- 7 YouTube videos
- 8 Other photos
- 9 Related articles
Reiwa 4 Hokuryu Town Respect for the Aged Day Event (Hokuryu Town Senior Citizens Welfare Center)
88th birthday celebration money presentation, permanent resident merit award, etc.
The Respect for the Aged Day event is a celebration for people aged 75 and over who live in Hokuryu Town.
In Kitaryū Town, 448 people (excluding residents of Eirakuen) were designated as eligible, of which 17 reached the age of 88 (beijuu) (those born between September 2, 1933 and September 1, 1934).
There are also 32 permanent residents who have made outstanding contributions (those who are 80 years old or older as of September 1, 2022, and have lived in Hokuryu Town for more than 60 years).
Today, 128 people attended (including 6 people celebrating their 88th birthday and 15 permanent residents who have made outstanding contributions).
We would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to all of you who are full of lively energy and power.
host
The general emcee was Naohiro Hosokawa, Chief of the Resident Affairs Division of Hokuryu Town. The award ceremony emcee was Hajime Nanba, Chief of the General Affairs Division.
Opening remarks: Mayor Yutaka Sano of Hokuryu Town
"I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations and joy that so many people are attending this grand Respect for the Aged Day event, the first in three years.
I am very happy to see everyone looking healthy and with lively faces.
This year marks the 130th anniversary of the settlement and development of the area by people from Chiba Prefecture in 1893. A commemorative ceremony was held on the 3rd of the other day.
I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all of you for your tireless efforts over the years.
The current population of Hokuryu is just under 1,700, of which 765 are 65 years old or older, making the aging rate 45.2%. The number of people 75 years old or older (including those living in Eirakuen) is 475, making up 28.1% of the total.
The oldest resident is Kiyoshi Kumeya (107 years old) from the Itaya neighborhood association, who is still living happily at Eirakuen.
Thank you to the 144 people (128 in attendance on the day) who attended today's Respect for the Aged Day event.
Hokuryu Town's agriculture, centered on safe and delicious sunflower rice, is highly regarded in Japan. Thanks to this, we have received a large amount of donations for the hometown tax system, mainly for sunflower rice, exceeding 300 million yen for the seventh consecutive year, with 600 million yen in 2020 and 400 million yen last year (2021). This small town of Hokuryu Town is receiving great expectations from all over the country.
The 36th Sunflower Festival, which ended the other day, produced some truly beautiful sunflowers. We were blessed with good weather during the festival.
Himawari no Sato was bustling with visitors, with 280,000 tourists visiting in one month, the third highest number ever. This year, due to COVID-19-related reasons, tourist buses have been largely shut down, and inbound tourists have not returned to Hokkaido, so the number of visitors was the third lowest ever.
We have also received a record-high amount of donations to help make the sunflowers bloom, totaling 3,837,000 yen. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the volunteers for their hard work.
We are now in the autumn season with a bountiful harvest, and the rice fields are once again in excellent condition. Rice harvesting also began today, the 6th, at the Mochimai rice farm.
Typhoon No. 11, which we were worried about, has now turned significantly to the left. This gives us some relief, but there is also a forecast of strong winds tonight and into tomorrow morning, so we ask that you remain extremely cautious.
After the festival, rice harvesting begins in the town, and we are busy every day. We hope to harvest a lot of delicious rice.
Today is the Respect for the Aged Day event, but eating and drinking will be prohibited at the venue. Thank you for your understanding.
This year, 17 people celebrated their 88th birthday. 32 people have been permanent residents of Hokuryu Town for over 60 years. Congratulations! We offer our heartfelt congratulations.
Although I am late, I would like to thank the members of the Hokuryu Town Red Cross Volunteer Group for helping with preparations for the Respect for the Aged Day event from early in the morning.
I would like to conclude my remarks on the occasion of the Respect for the Aged Day celebration by praying for everyone's good health and happiness. Congratulations to everyone."
Congratulatory speech: Yasuhiro Sasaki, Chairman of the Hokuryu Town Council
"I am grateful that we are able to meet today, holding this Respect for the Aged Day event amid the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Japan's best sunflower village and best sunflower rice are undoubtedly the result of everyone's efforts. I would like to express my gratitude once again.
This morning on TV, there was a news report about the fourth anniversary of the Iburi Eastern Earthquake. In the report, a resident of Atsuma town said, "We no longer have a community. We are troubled because we can no longer hold our most important gatherings (such as Respect for the Aged Day events)." While over 90% of the physical restoration of buildings and other structures has been completed, the recovery of the hearts of the residents is still slow.
Today, we will be providing takeaway lunches and other items, but even so, I am grateful to have the opportunity to meet and talk with you all.
Prices are high right now, and construction materials are expensive, making for a very difficult situation. First, 10,000 yen local promotion coupons were distributed to everyone so that they could shop within the town. The mayor is also fully considering continuing to implement this in the future. For example, I hope that we can create "round-up coupons" to be used when rounding up rice after the rice harvest, which will help promote the local community in a warm way.
Today, 144 people attended (128 people attended on the day), including 17 people celebrating their 88th birthdays and 32 people who have made distinguished service to the community as permanent residents. Congratulations!
Not just today, but every day I think about how I hope the environment will return to where I can talk with you all in various places, walking around town. Congratulations today."
Introducing the guests
Mr. Yasuhiro Sasaki (Chairman of Hokuryu Town Council), Mr. Takeshi Yamamoto (Chairman of Hokuryu Town Social Welfare Council), Mr. Hirokuni Kitakiyo (Representative Director of JA Kitasorachi Hokuryu District), Mr. Junichi Fukase (Chairman of Hokuryu Town Land Improvement District), Mr. Kenji Sazaki (Vice President of Hokuryu Town Chamber of Commerce and Industry), Mr. Koji Kawada (Chairman of Hokuryu Town Sunflower Longevity Association), Mr. Yoshiharu Yamashita (Vice President of Hokuryu Town Sunflower Longevity Association), Mr. Katsuhiro Nagai (Vice President of Hokuryu Town Sunflower Longevity Association), Ms. Etsuko Aoki (Vice President of Hokuryu Town Sunflower Longevity Association)
88th birthday gift
*88th birthday: Those born between September 2, 1933 (Showa 8) and September 1, 1934 (Showa 9) (list adjustment as of September 1, 2022)
Permanent Resident Merit Award (representative recipient)
* Residents for 60 years or more. 80 years or older as of September 1, 2022 (list adjustment as of September 1, 2022)
Attractions
Sakurashinryu Sword Poetry Dance Association
Aoba no Fue: Isao Hoshiba
Eyes: Kazuko Nishiyama and Hideko Kawada
Hokuryu Taiko
- Performer:Hiroyo Nakamura, Chihiro Itagaki, Toshiki Okabe
- Song played:"Mukoguchi" "Fireworks" "Yamabiko"
Greetings from Representative Hiroyo Nakamura
"It is unfortunate that we are unable to hold a dinner at this special celebration in these times, but we will do our best to play the Hokuryu Taiko, so we hope you will enjoy the performance.
The second song will be "Fireworks." Hokuryu Town has six "Carrying Oke Taiko" drums. We hope everyone will enjoy them.
I'm sure there are some people out there who would like to try playing the drums. It may be difficult to do so in these times, but I have a feeling in my heart that the virus is gradually weakening.
If you would like, I would like you to play the Japanese drums as a warm-up when we are all gathered together.
If you hit someone, you'll get complaints, if you hit something it will break, and it's a lot of work to clean up. But no matter how hard you hit the drum, it won't break. If you hit it while venting your frustrations, you'll even forget that you're hitting it.
I hope you will keep this book close to you and by your side. I hope that somewhere in your heart you will have the desire to try it someday.
The last song, "Yamabiko," was written by our predecessors around 2001-2002 when the Muroran Bridge was completed, with the aim of getting it listed in the Guinness Book of World Records under the name Sennin Taiko. It is now performed all over the country.
In Hokuryu Town, we performed at Himawari no Sato on August 7th, and also recently at the town's 130th anniversary celebrations. We hope to be able to see you all at the cultural festival in November. Finally, please listen to "Yamabiko."
Three cheers: Hokuryu Town Social Welfare Council Chairman Yamamoto Takeshi
"Congratulations on today's Hokuryu Town Respect for the Aged Day event!
This year marks the 130th anniversary of the founding of Hokuryu Town. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to our predecessors for their tireless efforts, hard work, and indomitable spirit that have built the Hokuryu Town we know today.
We wish all participants continued good health and happiness, and hope to see you here again next year in good health.We will close the event with three cheers, praying for the continued growth of Hokuryu Town.
"Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!"
thank you very much!!!".
Seeing off
Mayor Yutaka Sano, Deputy Mayor Toshimasa Takahashi, and Superintendent of Education Kazushi Arima saw everyone off.
Members of the Hokuryu Town Red Cross Volunteer Corps, mainly from the town hall, helped out as volunteers by preparing food and other activities on the day!
A variety of celebratory items
There were many celebratory items, including bento boxes, red and white manju, beer, tea, and souvenirs (towels).
With boundless love, gratitude, and prayers, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the healthy elderly people who have survived these difficult times and continue to shine brightly.
YouTube videos
Other photos
Related articles
◇ Photography and editing: Noboru Terauchi Interview and text: Ikuko Terauchi
![Hokuryu Town "Child-raising" Lecture: "What is Child-raising?" [Yamazaki Akane, Hiroshima University Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences] Remote Presentation](https://portal.hokuryu.info/wp/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-12-30-7.22.28-375x280.jpg)
