ABSTRACT
In Yokohama, the vast majority of “social welfare” activities were organized for
the elderly, and were primarily social in nature in that they did not address
particular utilitarian needs.1 These included parties, lunches, karaoke contests,
gateball (a type of croquet popular among older people in Japan) events, and
other social gatherings for people who were basically healthy and able to walk to
the neighborhood hall, public grounds, or social welfare center to participate.
National statistics suggest a similar tendency, as the most popular social welfare
activities for the elderly are “food service” at 21.7 percent, “visiting the elderly”
(in their homes) at 15.3 percent, “advice and chatting” at 14.7 percent, and
“giving performances” at 13.9 percent (Zenkoku shakai fukushi kyo¯gikai 1996:
I-29). This chapter explores volunteers’ attempts to create programs that aimed
to achieve social goals within the constraints of their limited budgets and lack of
training and institutional support. In the second half of the chapter, I argue that
the decision to receive the care of volunteers is intimately tied to public ideas of
how one should behave in old age.2
