Director Focus - Shuichi Takano, Shimane Asahi Training Centre

After graduating from college, I worked for an advertising agency for eight years, mainly for Honda, advertising passenger cars and motorcycles in a completely different industry. When I was 25, I met the then Secretary General of JGDA, and helped him as a volunteer. At 30, I left the company to start my own business. Shortly after, in 1992, I accepted an invitation to organize a charity golf tournament sponsored by JGDA, and that was the beginning of our relationship. Since then, I have served in collecting donations as a contract employee and became a full-time employee in 2003, becoming a board member in 2019.

Golf. If I have time on my day off, I will go to a golf course that is a 10-minute drive from my home, finish playing in 3 to 4 hours, and return home.

Shimane Asahi Training Centre was established in Hamada City, Shimane Prefecture, in October 2008 and celebrated its 14th anniversary this year. The centre serves as a base for guide dog training and rehabilitation for the visually impaired in nine prefectures in Chugoku and Shikoku regions.
The centre was established to cooperate with a PFI project of the Ministry of Justice called the "Shimane Asahi Puppy Project," the first of its kind in Japan, in which inmates and local volunteers work collaboratively to raise guide dog puppies. The program aims to help inmates develop empathy for others, patience, respect for life, and community interaction through raising puppies. The program is now in its 14th year and has raised a total of 74 puppies so far.
Along with the Shimane Asahi Training Centre, we established the Hiroshima Office in Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, as a training base for guide dogs. The two offices are working in close cooperation.
In addition, the "Medium- to Long-term Plan" set for FY2020 includes plans to expand the Hiroshima Office and open a Hiroshima Training Center in FY2027.

The nickname of Shimane Asahi Training Center is "Puppiness". We coined the name by combining the words "puppy" and "harness". The name expresses the meaning of contributing to society through providing guide dogs free of charge, based on the growth of puppies raised by prisoners through cooperation in the "Shimane Asahi Puppy Project".
Another important activity is the awareness program. Where staff members visit about 100 schools yearly, especially elementary schools, to provide children with correct knowledge about guide dogs and the visually impaired.
Through 14 years of activities, our staff members are working day and night "cheerfully, joyfully, and energetically" to achieve a society in which citizens of nine prefectures in Chugoku and Shikoku support the visually impaired.
Please visit us at Shimane Asahi Training Center in Hamada City, Shimane Prefecture. We will always welcome you.