“Eating with others makes everything more delicious!”

Having a companion or companions at mealtime clearly makes the eating experience more enjoyable – and more delicious. That’s why, since 2021, Pokémon has supported the operation of Japan’s “children’s cafeterias.”

Children’s cafeterias were created to provide hot meals to children in need. Support to this vital initiative has been provided by the Pokémon with You Foundation since the organization’s establishment in 2021. The Foundation’s roots trace back to a group of employees of The Pokémon Company who volunteered their assistance after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami disaster of 2011. The decision to support the nation’s children’s cafeterias was made 10 years after that devastating event, at a time when the Foundation was seeking to further expand its activities.

The first question was to determine how Pokémon could help in the operation of children’s cafeterias. To find out, a representative from the Pokémon with You Foundation interviewed cafeteria operators and visited cafeterias to learn what they do. Beforehand, the image we held of children’s cafeterias was mostly as places that provide meals to children in need, due to poverty for example. But after actually visiting the children’s cafeterias, it became clear that these are places where, besides receiving healthy meals, children can play together, talk together, and even do homework together. To many children, the cafeterias provide a “home-away-from-home” atmosphere in which they can thrive and have fun.

By getting involved in the activities of children’s cafeterias, Pokémon sought to make the environment in the cafeterias even more enjoyable for the children who regularly visit them. We also wanted to help eliminate any sense of hesitation people might feel toward going to a children’s cafeteria. With these two goals in mind, we launched the activities of our “Pokémon Children’s Cafeteria Support Team.”

In terms of material support, the Support Team considers the various issues faced by children’s cafeterias and plans, prepares and provides items appropriate to each situation. Special attention goes into coordinating these items with events linked to seasonal occasions.

At Christmas time, for example, we provided craft paper decorated with Pokémon for the children to use making their own Christmas trees. Some youngsters who go to the cafeterias have no opportunity to experience the warmth and enjoyment of Christmas at home. Our wish was that, after having their meal, the children would get together and craft their own trees to take home. In this way we hoped to help create enjoyable memories of Christmas for children in circumstances making it necessary to go to a children’s cafeteria – something the people who operate the cafeterias, or volunteer there, had expressed a strong need for.

We also regularly provide goods to the staff who support the operation of children’s cafeterias – goods we hope will help build close relationships between the children and the volunteers whose participation makes operation of the cafeterias possible. As an example, we have provided staff aprons in Pikachu yellow decorated with Pokémon illustrations. Staff have told us that wearing the aprons boosts their motivation, something we are pleased and excited to hear.

We also support children’s cafeterias through visits by Pikachu. Besides providing children with opportunities to mingle with Pikachu, visits are also used as opportunities for children to participate in various activities, like making reusable tote bags. Our hope is that visits by Pikachu will generate broad interest in children’s cafeterias and foster an understanding that the cafeterias are places open to any and all visitors. We hear that quite a few children and family members who visited a children’s cafeteria for the first time because Pikachu would be there, have gone on to become regular cafeteria visitors after that.

Pokémon has been conducting activities in support of children’s cafeterias for five years now. In the process, other corporate entities have been inspired to offer their support as well, and an increasing number have come to us asking for suggestions on how they could help out. From our experience we tell them how they can contribute in ways other than providing material goods. Out of this we hope that children’s cafeterias will come to be supported in many more different ways in the years ahead.

Through our activities in support of children’s cafeterias, today the Pokémon with You Foundation looks forward to continuously expanding the community of supporters – to bring more and more smiles of joy everywhere.