On 19 July 2024, a ceremony was held in the gymnasium of Takeya Elementary School in Hiroshima to present the UN Peace Bell to the Takeya Area Atomic Bomb Memorial Ceremony Executive Committee, with 300 schoolchildren in attendance. In attendance were KOYANAGI Hiroshi, Chairman of the Takeya Area Atomic Bomb Memorial Ceremony Executive Committee, MIYASEI Junji, Principal of Takeya Elementary School, SUZUKI koudou, PTA President, SADAI Yuji, Chairman of the Takeya Area Social Welfare Council, and KURAMOTO Ken, Member of Hiroshima Prefecture Assembly.
After a talk on the Peace Bell by Representative TAKASE, the two representative children were presented with a 4 kg Peace Bell.
After a heartfelt speech by PTA President SUZUKI, Representative TAKASE rang the Peace Bell, and the sound of the bell echoed through the gymnasium as everyone prayed for peace.
Takeya National School was located about 1,500 meters from the A-bomb hypocenter. Teachers and students who were at the school on the day of the bombing were killed. The Monument to the National School and Pupils who died in the Atomic Bomb is said to be about the teachers and children of Takeya National School. The school was rebuilt in its present location after the war, and a memorial ceremony is held every year on 4 August to pray for the repose of the souls of the A-bomb victims. Until now, they used to borrow a bell from a nearby temple and ring it during the ceremony to pray for peace, but when they saw the website of the Association, they strongly wished to ring their own bell at the ceremony, so we decided to present them with a peace bell.
We are grateful for this wonderful opportunity.
