The Gifu JET Stream
A blog brought to you by your PAs and RPAs to keep you updated on Gifu JETs.
The second group of ALTs from the United States arrived in Gifu on Monday, September 27, 2021, after their two-week quarantine in Tokyo.
Three municipal ALTs (Connor, Samuel and Trevor) and two prefectural senior high school ALTs (Calvin and Christopher) were accompanied by Gelo and Sobajima-san who picked them up from Tokyo Station. The new JETs had a small welcome gathering at the General Education Center where they met with other PAs and officials from the prefectural Board of Education and the International Exchange Division. They were then handed over to their respective supervisors and JTEs from Sekigahara City, Ena City, Hida City, Ogaki Technical Senior High School and Gifu Technical Senior High School. 岐阜へようこそ! Welcome to Gifu!
After their two-week quarantine in Tokyo, six new JETs from the Japanese Consulates in Los Angeles and Phoenix arrived in Gifu on Monday, July 12, 2021. Two municipal ALTs (Jimmy and Athena), three prefectural senior high school ALTs (Denise, Kaitlin and Samantha), and one prefectural CIR (Hunter) were accompanied by Peter and Sobajima-san who picked them up from Tokyo Station. The new JETs had a small welcome luncheon at the Gifu Education Center where they met with other PAs and officials from the prefectural Board of Education and the International Exchange Division. They were then handed over to their respective supervisors and JTEs from Ena City, Toki City, Kani Senior High School, Ikeda Senior High School, Yoshiki Senior High School and IAMAS. Spring marks new beginnings. As the cherry blossoms reach their peak in most parts of the prefecture over the weekend, our Regional Prefectural Advisor (RPA) team will have four new members starting on April 1st.
Nelly, Cal, Josh and Hemi will join our current RPAs (Vanessa, Alicia, Judas, Clint and Lindsay) to support the JET community in Gifu Prefecture. Please do not hesitate to reach out to them for any questions or concerns. GIFU Onella "Nelly" Farnell Nelly is a second year JET from England and is currently working at a SHS in Gifu City. Before coming to Japan Nelly studied Undergraduate in Education and Childhood Studies and a Masters’ in Education. When she is not working, she is often found relaxing or attempting to cook traditional Caribbean sweets and food. More recently, she has taken up gardening and is growing strawberries and tomatoes. She loves talking to people, so don’t hesitate to contact her if you ever need any help! Jessiete "Cal" Amerila Heard of Iloilo before? If not, then ask Cal. He has a hundred and one ways of showing you how rich the culture is, how breathtaking the mountains and beaches are, and how booming the economy is becoming of his hometown nestled right at the center of the Philippines. He will cook for you, tell you stories, show you pictures, and even make an itinerary for your next trip to the Philippines! (Provided, of course, that you visit Iloilo. XD) His apartment unit always smells of garlic and onion—a staple in Filipino cooking—, and his cupboard is never short of weird Southeast Asian ingredients he still orders from the Philippines. He lives his introverted life in the quiet neighborhood of West Yabuta in Gifu City, where you will find him studying Spanish and Japanese—if not cooking like Strega Nona—as his lifelong goal is to ultimately become a polyglot. HIDA Joshua Ramos Joshua Seiya Ramos is a half-American half-Japanese raised in Okinawa, > Japan and moved to Gifu prefecture from Pensacola, Florida, which is the sister city of Gero Onsen, where he currently works as an municipal ALT. He > is an avid fan of run on sentences. He previously worked as a server, an > Environmental Specialist Assistant for the Department of Environmental Protection - Northwest Aquatic Preserve and as a teachers assistant in Exceptional Student Services. He thoroughly enjoys binge reading, bushwhacking/trekking, shredding fresh Japow, lifting heavy stuff, > attempting choreography workshops, and environmental science. Let him know if you need any info on some lovely trails within the Hida area. Hemi Witehira Hemi is a third year JET from New Zealand. He lives in the quite town of Takayama which is surrounded by beautiful mountains and nature. Within his free time, he loves to drive and explore places off the beaten track where you can find those hidden treasures. Aside from driving and taking in the views he strives to make the most out of summer with hiking mountains, swimming in rivers and surfing whenever he can get near a good beach. CONTINUING RPAs Please refer to the previous post for their self-introductions and photos. SEINO Vanessa Ann Liwag CHUNO Alicia LaPoint Jared "Judas" Hoffman TONO Lindsay Lamp Clinton-Khile Bragger One of the aims of the Regional Prefectural Advisor (RPA) system is to create a more efficient support network for JETs in Gifu Prefecture. Acting as their region's peer support, RPAs conduct regular check-ins on their fellow JETs, help create resources for them, and lead workshops at orientations and conferences. They also help their respective regions build a collaborative community of JETs.
HIDA Nicole Pehrson Nicole is a third-year ALT from the American Southwest, currently working at a senior high school in beautiful Takayama. Before coming to Japan, she worked as a musician and teacher in the USA. She enjoys talking with and learning from students and is always looking for ways to improve English classes. She spends her time outside of school playing music, reading, and going on pilgrimages around Japan. She loves classical music, Japanese history, and Hida area. Jordan Verburg Jordan is a 4th year JET from Canada. He lives in the small village of Hongou surrounded by the beautiful mountains of Hida. As with many Canadians, he has a passion for ice hockey, something that he has continued to play even in Japan. Besides the occasional outings to explore the countryside on his motorcycle, he likes to relax at home in his retro game room. Chevaughn Whyte Chevaughn is a third year JET from Jamaica, living in the High Mountains (Takayama) of Hida and yes, he likes reggae music. Other than his dedication towards his students, he also plans to be an aikido master within next 2 years. He enjoys anything that has to do with being outdoors, which includes: hiking, chasing waterfalls and swimming in random rivers. So, if you’re interested in going on epic adventures through the inaka (countryside) of Japan please feel free to hit him up for any advice or suggestions. TONO Clinton-Khile Brägger Clinton-Khile Brägger is a half-Swiss, half-American boy from Los Angeles. He graduated from the Film and Television program at University of California, Los Angeles, where he majored in film production and directing. Now he is putting his film skills to use on his YouTube channels, where he chronicles his life in Japan, as well as makes tourism content for Mizunami City. Upon arriving in Japan, Clint quickly found a passion for Kyudo — a traditional form of Japanese long-bow archery — and has recently passed his second level skills test. Clint’s dream after JET is to open a Swiss fondue and raclette restaurant in the heart of Nagoya, and continue working on his film passion projects in his free time. Lindsay Lamp Lindsay Lamp is the newest member of the Tono RPA team She is from St. Louis, Missouri, home of Budweiser, Fitz's, Imo's Pizza, Ted Drewe's, toasted ravioli... probably some non-food things, too. She majored in Psychology at Truman State University, and minored in Asian Studies. Before she came to Japan, she was working (and far more often, playing) as a behavioral therapist for children with autism. Lindsay moved to Japan in August of 2019, so she is currently a first year JET. She lives in Mizunami (same as Clint), and teaches at three different junior high schools in the area. She usually cooks or plays video games, and she also loves hiking, music, watering her plants, and wandering around Nagoya. She looks forward to getting to know everyone, so please feel free to contact her. Logan McCarthy Logan is an Irish-American third year municipal ALT from Wrentham, Massachusetts (just off Boston’s front yard). With a Bachelor’s in Graphic Design and two-year’s experience pointing out turtles and swans for grade schoolers at a wildlife sanctuary, he made the courageous leap to teaching English in Japan. He lives just shy of the northernmost tip of Toki, where he likes to play Pokemon Go when the weather is nice. With the hub of the city being a thirty-minute walk away, he often hits the town for beef bowls at Sukiya or butter soy fries at Hamazushi. In any given week, you can find him chilling with Clint and Lindsay (see other Tono RPAs), making music and videos, or battling claw machines in Nagoya. SEINO Andy Kirk Vern Lee Kirk is from the land north of the country in the west with fifty states. He likes big cities and of course ended up in Gifu. Despite that he has adapted and has found some appreciation for the beauty and charm of the countryside thanks to his trusty friend, his bicycle. He hasn’t had the chance to explore Seino too much, but hopes to do so more in the future. He is excited and is looking forward to helping other JETs as an RPA. Vanessa Ann Liwag Vanessa is a 2nd year ALT currently living in Ogaki City (Seino Region), and she is from the bustling city of Manila, Philippines. She has a fondness for food, travelling, taking pictures, watching dog videos online, and of course, rice! Contrary to popular belief that all Filipinos are great singers, Vanessa is NOT. Instead, she will happily cheer you on if you ever go to a Karaoke with her! When she’s not thinking about exercising, trying to make halo-halo world famous, and playing Christmas music all year round, you will find her exploring her city and planning future trips. She is looking forward to meeting you all and is excited for the great year ahead! GIFU/CHUNO Jared (Judas) Hoffman (Chuno RPA in September 2020) Judas is an Australian CIR from Melbourne. He is outgoing and loves to hang with friends. He has lived in Spain and has taught English in Madrid and Spanish in Melbourne - languages are a big passion. Apart from Spanish and Japanese, he has had several flings including Auslan (Australian Sign Language) and Dutch, his father’s native tongue, and wants to become fluent in them when he has the opportunity and time. He likes politics, reading, cooking, yoga and music. Always down for banter or a deep convo (known as “a D and M” in Australian). Alicia LaPoint (Chuno RPA in September 2020) Alicia is a fourth year ALT working in Gifu city with a bachelor’s in Linguistics. Before living in Japan, she lived in New York, USA and worked in the capital (Fun fact: It’s Albany!). Even living in Japan, she still maintains her favorite activities: hiking, karaoke, telling people she’s not from New York City, and maintaining her coffee addiction. She’s always looking for excuses to go out for coffee, so if you have any qualms or just want to sit down for a cup of coffee (or tea!), call her up! Shirin Lee Shirin Lee is a second year high school ALT in Gifu City and she is from Belfast, Northern Ireland (and no not everyone is a leprechaun). She has studied English Language Teaching and Linguistics, and has taught English to students from different language proficiencies. She may seem quiet at first but once you get to know her, she is actually a Mad Hatter. Shirin has too many hobbies but she particularly likes singing, playing music, bouldering, reading and cooking. When Shirin moved to Japan, she did everything wrong and made a lot of mistakes; if you think you have done something embarrassing, she probably did something worse. Hannah Wehrer Hannah is from the lovely Washington State, USA. She currently works at Gifu Shotoku Gakuen High School in Gifu City. Outside of work, she can be seen walking around Gifu or Nagoya, reading, or feeding her slight obsession with Pokémon (mostly the last one). Feel free to come to her with any questions. She is looking forward to working with everyone. Sebastian Zusi Sebastian is a 2nd year JET, from Washington State, USA. He has a degree in Psychology and Political Science and spent close to a year in Brazil on a research program in university. He lived in Mongolia for 3 years as a Peace Corps Volunteer before becoming an ALT in Kitagata Town in Gifu Prefecture. Sebastian’s hobbies include photography, videography, and long scooter rides through the mountains. He is no stranger to moving abroad, learning a new language, and being the odd one out so please feel free to contact Sebastian if you have questions, need a wall to bounce ideas off of, or just want to go out and take some pictures with someone. |
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April 2024
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