Photo/Illutration Mieko Hattori and her husband, Masaichi, attend a social gathering for Japanese and U.S. students held at Aichi Prefectural Asahigaoka Senior High School in Nagoya’s Higashi Ward on Dec. 19, 2024. (Yoshinobu Matsunaga)

NAGOYA—An unknown benefactor is helping the bereaved parents of a teenager fatally shot in the United States more than 30 years ago continue their fund for needy U.S. students in Japan.

The only clue to the identity of the person who gave them 10 million yen ($64,000) in cash was the alias “Ashinaga-jijii” (Old man with long legs).

Masaichi and Mieko Hattori set up the fund in 1993, a year after the death of their 16-year-old son, Yoshihiro.

Yoshihiro was studying in the southern U.S. state of Louisiana on a student exchange program hosted by AFS Japan, an international education organization.

In October 1992, he was supposed to go to a Halloween party but went to the wrong address. The armed homeowner at the front door, wrongly believing the costume-wearing Yoshihiro was up to no good, ordered the teenager to “freeze.”

Yoshihiro apparently mistakenly heard it as “please,” turned toward the man and was fatally shot.

The parents established the “Yoshi Fund” in June 1993 as part of AFS Japan to offer U.S. students a chance to study in Japan while learning what it is like to live in a virtually gun-free society.

They said they thought it would be regrettable if the exchange program suffered setbacks because of the shooting.

Using Yoshihiro’s accident insurance payments and support from AFS Japan, AFS-USA and other organizations, the fund has welcomed 34 senior high school students from the United States.

Aimed at financially struggling students, the fund provides about 2.8 million yen per student, the estimated amount required for a 10-month stay in Japan.

Despite facing a shortage of fund money, Masaichi and Mieko want to continue the program for at least five more years. They started soliciting donations in late October, aiming to raise 8.5 million yen.

At around 8 a.m. on Oct. 31, Mieko found a paper bag containing 10 million yen in cash on a table in the garden at their house in Nagoya’s Minato Ward.

A note read: “Please use this for the Yoshi Fund. Ashinaga-jijii.”

The name could be a reference to “Daddy-Long-Legs,” a U.S. novel about a girl from an orphanage whose college tuition is paid for by a mysterious benefactor.

The Hattoris told the Minato Police Station about the money. Officers there said the cash would be theirs if it was not claimed within three months.

Masaichi and Mieko have invited U.S. students to their house for conversations, and they keep in touch with the young Americans after they return to their home country.

“I’m grateful for the heartfelt intention,” Masaichi said of the donation. “I’d like to ask for support and cooperation so that we can continue accepting students from the United States.”

For details about the fund, visit AFS Japan’s website at (https://www.afs.or.jp/news20251003/).

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