Specified Nonprofit Corporation AYA

Specified Nonprofit Corporation AYA is working to solve often-overlooked social issues faced by children with illnesses or disabilities and by their families. By providing experiences in sports, arts, and culture, they aim to provide the children with opportunities that broaden their horizons and eliminate the experience gaps that exist outside of public education.

We spoke with representative Nakagawa-san, and members Okada-san and Nunomura-san.

A scene from a casual conversation during a talk event introducing the organization as part of their second anniversary event. (From the right) Representative Nakagawa-san, Okada-san, and Nunomura-san.

Please tell us about your background and what motivated you to start Buddy Team’s activities?

When I was little, I had a childhood friend whose family was very close. My friend had a younger sister who developed a disease with no cure at the time. She was diagnosed at age 8 and became bedridden within a year. Her mother told me, "Even though she was bedridden, I wanted her to have many experiences. However, going out involved many access-related barriers, and even when we did manage to get out, we worried about what others would think, so in the end we hardly ever took her out." Even now, nearly 20 years after her death, her mother still regrets it: "I should have taken her out regardless." I heard this story when I was in high school, and it was a major motivation for me to become a doctor.

After becoming a doctor, I worked in gastroenterological surgery and emergency care rather than paediatrics. During this time, I had many opportunities to interact with sick children and their families and heard from parents who shared similar concerns and feelings. Then, about four years ago, a conversation with someone triggered a strong feeling inside me that I wanted to do something for children with illnesses and disabilities. Driven by this, I founded AYA.

By the way, the name AYA comes from my friend's younger sister's name, Ayako. I am currently acting as the representative, but even if the day comes when I step down, the origins of this organization will remain Aya-chan. With that thought in mind, I named the organization "AYA."

Are you facing any difficulties with the organization's activities?

Nakagawa-san: I can't think of any difficulties right away. That's because I believe that with ideas and ingenuity, we can eventually remove any barriers to our activities. The entire organization works together to turn our ideas into reality. To give a specific example, when we rented out a movie theatre for an event, we wanted many children in wheelchairs, strollers, and stretchers to participate, but the theatre didn't have the space for them. Even in such cases, we reached out to architectural experts and learned together to understand what the issues are (in this case, the Fire Prevention Ordinance within the Fire Service Act) and continue to take on the challenge to solve the problem.

A scene from the "AYA Inclusive Film Screening (in Saga)" event held on March 30, 2025. Many children in wheelchairs and strollers participated.

Please tell us about a time when you felt that your activities with the organization were rewarding.

Okada-san: We hold events nationwide, but I feel especially rewarded when we are able to bring AYA's activities to people living in rural areas.

Nunomura-san: There was an event that our members had put a lot of ideas and ingenuity into and receiving words of gratitude from the participants and volunteers was not only rewarding, but also very moving. Also, when I read the post-event questionnaire, I realized the hardships the participants' families had been going through, and how special it was to just be able to watch a movie once. That moment reminded me again of how glad I was to have held the AYA event, and I realized that we needed to continue this activity.

Please tell us how the donations from FIT are used.

Nakagawa-san: First, we used the donations from FIT, to renovate our organization's website. Also, as the number of events and participants has increased, we would like to use technology to streamline the administrative work that we had been handling through raw manpower. It would also be great to create a database of information about cinemas and donors.

Please tell us about your organization's future activities.

Nakagawa-san: First, we plan to hold at least one film event in each of the 47 prefectures during fiscal 2025. Then, in fiscal 2027, we would like to hold film events simultaneously in all 47 prefectures. We hope that this will serve as a good opportunity to raise awareness in society about children with illnesses or disabilities and their families.

After achieving this in 2027, we plan to expand the successful model of these film events across various genres, and by 2030 we plan to establish "event days" for other forms of entertainment, such as sports and music, where children with illnesses or disabilities and their families can enjoy themselves. We envision holding such special days once every quarter.

I believe that by increasing the frequency with which children with illnesses or disabilities go out, understanding and awareness will increase among people involved in the entertainment industry and the general public. I fantasise that in about five years, we could rent out a well-known, popular theme park to hold an event.

A commemorative photo of AYA staff and families participating in an event held to celebrate the second anniversary of the organization’s founding.

Please provide a final message to those reading this article.

Nakagawa-san: Thank you very much for your donation. We hope that many people will come and enjoy AYA's activities. We announce events on our website, and you can also inquire about volunteer registration, so please do come along!