Photo/Illutration After the “gathering of 20-year-olds” ceremony, participants break into smiles as they look at the mementos from their childhood time capsule in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 11. (Nobuhiro Shirai)

Ceremonies to celebrate those turning 20 years old were held in three quake-devastated municipalities in the Noto Peninsula on Jan. 11.

The events in the cities of Wajima and Suzu, and Anamizu town, were not held last year due to the magnitude-7.6 temblor that struck on New Year’s Day.

Although the legal age of adulthood was lowered to 18 in 2022, many local governments continue hosting Coming-of-Age Day ceremonies for 20-year-olds.

The ceremonies were for 397 people who will have turned 20 in fiscal 2024, which ends March 31.

In Suzu, 79 of the 100 eligible participants attended the ceremony at the city-run La Porte Suzu multipurpose hall.

As the representative of the group, Mihaya Sugitaki took the podium and made a pledge, “When we face difficulties, we must support people and do our best to make the community and the future better.”

Sugitaki, a third-year student at Kanazawa University studying to become a nurse, was in Kanazawa when the earthquake hit.

She expressed gratitude for her everyday life, citing the safety of her family and the presence of basic services such as water and electricity.

“I hope to restore the warmth of the community as it was before, even if it is difficult to do so immediately,” she said.

In Wajima, 125 of the 232 eligible participants attended a ceremony held in the gymnasium of Wajima Junior High School.

One of the representatives, Mihaya Furutani, 21, left her hometown after the earthquake as her home in the city was partially damaged and the restaurant that her parents managed was destroyed.

The Japan Aviation Academy’s Ishikawa campus, where she commuted by bus to school to become an engineer, was damaged in the quake, and classes have resumed at another campus in Ome, western Tokyo. Furutani has been living in a dormitory in the city since May.

“I am sad to be away from home. I still love my hometown,” she said.

Furutani continued her pledge, “I believe that each and every one of us living in this city had a sense of caring for those around us, which is why we were able to help each other and live without giving up.”

Ceremonies for those who will turn 20 in fiscal 2025 were to be held on Jan. 12.

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