Hello!
We are the Kuehne family. We have been missionaries in Japan since 2011. We moved to Oita in 2023, which is on the southern island of Kyushu, Japan. We’re working alongside a YWAM team to establish a new Christian International School: Hinoki Academy. Hinoki Academy is a K-9 nature school. We spend two days a week in English, two in Japanese, and one day outside in nature. It’s a lovely, healthy place with passionate teachers and a small growing number of energetic kids!
Japanese public schools are healthy places for many children. But there can be struggles such as:
-Higher rates of mental illness and suicide than other developed nations
-Hikikomori, where some children or people choose to stop leaving their homes because of the pressures to succeed or fit in
-Bullying, where other students may turn against or exclude a child who doesn’t conform
Our students spend time in nature, hear about God, read lots of good books, grow as artists, dig into mathematical problem solving, and learn science and history through living books and hands on activities. We aim to stretch them and challenge them just the right amount to blossom and grow. Some come needing time to heal, and we teach them gently. Our growing student body is a blend of different nationalities, ages, academic abilities, language abilities, and needs.
We want to be “good soil” for Japanese and international children (Matthew 13:8). This includes the students who are struggling and need a different system to thrive. It also includes students who are not struggling but whose families have a God-given longing for something different. Some will recognize that longing as a longing for the Kingdom of God and some will not have even heard of the Kingdom of God when they come to us. But we pray that all the children who come to our school will experience the King and learn that the longing for life that is inside them is truly a longing for Him.
Hinoki Academy is committed to keeping costs low enough to be accessible to a wide number of students. They will provide us with a living wage once we have at least 15 students.
As of May, 2025, our school’s financial needs are:- My family needs 35,000 yen per month ($240) to reach the basic financial stability to allow us to continue on beyond August, 2025. You can donate to that via this Equipnet page.
-The tuition at our school of 40,000 per month ($275 per month) is too much for some of our students and some have requested scholarships. We receive these students even if they cannot pay and even if we do not yet have scholarship supporters. If you would like more information about scholarship needs and to support a student who needs an alternative education, please contact: hinokiacademy@gmail.com
-Our school is currently fundraising to purchase a school building. There is a truly amazing building that was introduced to us. It was being built to be a special needs school with farming, and then the owner unfortunately passed away. It is beautiful and has lots of land around it. The way it came to us made it feel like it was God’s idea—it’s something only He can make happen. If you would like to contribute to our school being able to own this building, please contact: hinokiacademy@gmail.com
Would you consider helping us meet any of these gaps? We are growing and excited by how close we are to stability.
Whether you can contribute financially or not, if our ministry is on your heart, we would love you on our prayer team! Our successes are also the successes of our supporters. We can’t do it alone.
Thank you for reading this and for standing with us!
The Kuehne Family