SAGINAW -- The crisis continues to escalate at Japan’s quake-damaged nuclear plant.

Elevated levels of radiation are turning up in tap water and food.

NBC25 talked with a Mid-Michigan woman who fears for her brother's safety in Japan.

Desperate to help, she held a tea ceremony to raise money for the victims.

It’s been two weeks since the earthquake and tsunami ravaged Japan, but Yoko Mossner says she thanks God every day her brother and his family are still alive.

“They all huddled under the dining room table and waited, but said it was very scary,” said Mossner.

Now threats of a breach at the Fukushima Nuclear Plant have Mossner worried about ground water contamination.

“My brother and I, we lived our lives.  You know we are in our golden age, but he has the family children and grandchildren,” said Mossner.

Mossner says she had to do something to help.

Saturday she held a tea ceremony at the Japanese Cultural Center in Saginaw to raise money for the victims.

She needed a moment to herself after becoming so overwhelmed by the community’s support.

The tea ceremony was a perfect fit to raise money for the victims in Japan, because it represents the people's patience and perseverance.

“There is a phrase in Japanese that means you fall seven times and get up eight times, and so you just don't give up,” said Mossner.

Mossner hasn't seen her brother in four years, and she won't give up until she's reunited with him once again.

As of Saturday, the official death toll in Japan is more than 10,000.

17,000 others are still missing.

If you’d like to help, you can donate money to the Japan Red Cross at the Japanese Cultural Center in Saginaw.