The second grade students at Braeburn Elementary School were filled with excitement when they received two Japanese Friendship Dolls in the spring of 2001. These dolls were made by Setsuko Akamizu, who lives in Shimane Prefecture, and Naoko Inohara, who lives in Takarazuka City in Hyogo Prefecture. This page gives a selection from the many thank-you letters sent to Ms. Akamizu and Ms. Inohara.

June 20, 2001

Dear Ms. Akamizu,

Thank you so much for doing all of that hard work just to make Akiko for us. When she came we had a doll ceremony for her. She is a very beautiful doll and looks real. Her kimono has very gorgeous fabric. She sits in our classroom on display and looks absolutely wonderful. She is so precious to our class because she is a real Japanese friendship doll. In our classroom we heard the story of the doll exchange. We celebrated Hina Matsuri and made an origami emperor and empress. We love the doll very much.

Sincerely,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Mrs. Akamizu,

Thank you for Akiko. Everyone loves her and admires her. We think she's pretty with her kimono and everything she has on. Mrs. Noriko put her in a very special place in our classroom. We are going to put her in another second grade classroom for more kids to look at her. Then we will put her in the library for everyone to see. We will treasure her.

Sincerely,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Akamizu,

Thank you for sending Akiko here to Mrs. Pomeranz's class. I love her. She is right now in our classroom. I love Akiko because you made her especially for us. I love Akiko because she is a real Japanese doll. I love Akiko because she wears a beautiful Japanese kimono. How did you make Akiko? Is Akiko's kimono made out of silk? What is Akiko made out of? Is it all stitching? Did you paint any of her? We are amazed that you could make such a beautiful doll. We will love her and treasure her.

Love,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Akamizu,

Thank you for Akiko and her clothes and accessories. Also, thank you for taking your time for making this doll and her accessories. We had a ceremony for the doll. The dolls we received at Braeburn are going to be put out in the library so everyone can see them.

Love,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Akamizu,

Thank you very much for Akiko! She is very special to everyone. We hope she will not leave our school forever. You put a lot of effort and time into her. Thank you so much for making Akiko just for us. We will never forget her!

Your friend,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Inohara,

Thank you very much for making Rikako. It is very hard to believe that you made her by hand. We honored this doll so much we had a special ceremony for her. For Dolls Day we made origami doll sets. I like to make legos just like you like to make dolls. Have you kept any of the dolls that you made? We have a Japanese teacher who taught us a lot about the Friendship Doll Program. We learned how to say hello and good morning in Japanese. Ohayo gozaimasu means good morning and konnichiwa means hello.

Signed by 2nd grade boy

Dear Ms. Inohara,

Thank you for Rikako. We love her. We had a special ceremony for the doll. It is beautiful. We like the clothes and pillow. We are learning all about the Japanese culture. We like the way you made it different than other dolls. We like it and we will take good care of Rikako.

Sincerely,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Inohara,

Thank you for donating Rikako to us in America. This Japanese doll is a very nice doll because it looks really friendly. Even though we can't play with Rikako, she is interesting to look at. Also, the entire second grade class appreciates your kindness. We will take good care of her.

From,
Signed by 2nd grade boy

Dear Mrs. Inohara,

Thank you so much for giving us Rikako. We honor her very much and treat her with great care. We love her so much. We had a doll festival for her. A few kids from all the second grade read poems, letters, and songs from pieces of paper and told a story about the Friendship Doll exchange. Pictures were taken of Rikako, and Mrs. Noriko sang a song in Japanese about the blue-eyed doll. Rikako was displayed in our room with a Japanese setting around her. Now she will be displayed in the library so everybody can enjoy her and the friendship that she carries on. We are most grateful that you have given us a very special opportunity to see her. All the kids in Braeburn are very happy to have her.

Love,
Signed by 2nd grade girl

Dear Ms. Inohara,

Thank you very much for spending your time to make Rikako. My class is very happy that you made these dolls for us and we just want to say Thank You! We will take very good care of her.