This is a repost from a fellow OOo community member in Japan giving an update on the restoration efforts and the donations he received by the OOo community.

Today I visited some evacuation centers in Ichinoseki city in Iwate-ken, one of the six prefectures in Tohoku region, Japan, and started to prepare my school, Ichinoseki English Language Institute (IELI), for evacuees from the devastated areas.

I cleaned up the mess.

I am planning to get tatami-mats or thick carpets, futons or mattresses, sheets, blankets, comforters, pillows, towels, heaters, pots, basins, cups and etc. for this place.

It has running water and electricity. It has a bathroom but no shower, no bathtub.
Good news is that there is a sento, a public bath, near :)

It is close to Ichinoseki train station and a major shopping street.
I am sure that neighbors, shop owners and restaurants will help us.
Then evacuees can relax, take a rest, stay for a while, stay overnight or more, use heaters to keep warm, drink hot water, eat warm food, keep their body clean and sleep well.

I am a member of OpenOffice.org Community, working as Community Contributor Representative Deputy and Marketing Project Coordinator for OpenOffice.org Japanese Language Project.

Alexandro Colorado, OpenOffice.org Español, started a thread proposing to support the victims of the Quake with a donation.

Several friends of mine advised me to get a PayPal account. So did I.
Today I received donations from Peter Junge and oooES (donaciones at openoffice.org). I really appreciate them for their consideration and action.