On my way to Japan

I'm on my way to Japan to support the emergency relief efforts of our partner, Peace Winds. But I wanted to take a moment to say thank you.

Thank you for what you're doing to help people affected by this terrible tragedy. Your contributions are helping get vital supplies into the hands of families made homeless by last Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami.

Peace Winds has been delivering relief supplies to evacuated families in the tsunami-devastated city of Kesennuma. They've sent large shelters, dozens of tents, tarps, blankets and food including bread, instant rice, apples and oranges.

I've worked side by side with Peace Winds' relief teams, including after 2003's massive earthquake in Bam, Iran. They are as experienced and effective as any aid group I've encountered.

I'll be supporting Peace Winds' efforts in whatever way I can, and paving the way for additional Mercy Corps emergency responders to bolster the response.