Jan.-Feb. 2013

New Year’s Greetings from JAA President Gary S. Moriwaki

Greetings to all and best wishes for a happy and safe 2013. One hundred years ago, in the year 1913, the State of California passed the Alien Land Act, which restricted the ability of Japanese to own land in that state. That same year, across the Pacific, Tohoku Imperial University (the predecessor of the present day Tohoku University) first admitted women. The next fifty years witnessed a world war in the Pacific, incarceration of Japanese Americans in the United States, the beginnings of the nuclear age, and the physical and cultural separation of Japanese Americans from their homeland. By 1963, the year Uye o muite ("Sukiyaki") hit number 1 on the American pop charts, relations between the US and Japan were on the mend. 1964 saw the historic Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Twenty five years ago, in 1988, President Reagan signed the Redress Act (H.R. 442) providing financial restitution to surviving Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during the Second World War. At the signing ceremony, he said, So, what is most important in this bill has less to do with property than with honor. For here we admit a wrong; here we reaffirm our commitment as a nation to equal justice under the law." Good words.

Throughout these historic events, JAA was there, serving the needs of the Japanese and Japanese American community in the New York area and beyond. In 2012 JAA continued its mission of community outreach and collaborated with many partners. Together with JMSA and numerous other organizations, it held its most well attended Senior and Health Weeks. With corporate partners Morgan Stanley and Bank of Tokyo, JAA held its Inaugural Japan Rising Golf Tournament, with 100% of the net proceeds going to the JAA Tohoku relief fund. With Japan Society and JCCI, we co-sponsored a lecture by Dr. Kurokawa, who chaired the recent Diet Special Commission investigating the events at the Daiichi Fukushima nuclear power plant. With JACL we sought to honor Japanese American veterans who served in the US military during the war and who were collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. We continue our work with partners on the ground in Tohoku who are working to provide economic relief, health care and other needed services in that region. With JAJA and the Hoshuko Alumni Association, we are seeking out a younger audience. And, of course, we continue to work closely with the Consul General and our very good friend Ambassador Hiroki.

All of this good work will continue throughout 2013, Of special note is our establishment of the Nishimiya Scholarship fund, in recognition of the friendship of our departed friend, Ambassador Nishimiya. We will not forget our friends and family in Tohoku; our directors and members, including Susan Onuma, Eiich Kuwana, Kamal Ramani, M.D., Shunichi Homma, M.D. and others will continue our visits and collaboration with NGOs working to resolve the many issues still facing the residents of the affected prefectures.

If you have not already done so, please help us in our efforts by joining JAA and contributing your time and resources. We will continue in the tradition of our founder, Toyohiko Takami, who dedicated himself over 105 years ago to helping Japanese and Japanese Americans in need.

Report of JAA japan Disaster Relief Fund
Report from Koishihama, Japan

I wanted to bring a bit of joy in this season for merriment with some photos taken at Koishihama, Japan. The project is progressing and is expected to complete in February 2013. The contractors we engaged are doing a fabulous job. I hope you can share the same pride and sense of optimism that I get from this project. Nothing is temporary. We are not waiting for the "next phase." Once this is done, the fishermen are set to get back to business. This will be the first processing warehouse on the Iwate coast impacted by the tsunami to have recovered from the damage of 3/11. The other buildings in the prefecture that are "fixed" have simply had filler and concrete poured to raise the pier and have thus been left with a sub-optimal building (roof too low, ledge built on pier to stop water, but making offloading more difficult, uneven ceiling, etc).
The project in Ryori gets started next year. Thank you so much for your continued support. I am aggressively pursuing other sponsors for Ryori and am hopeful to get the order filled soon.

Satoshi Kitahara, Founder of Kizuna Foundation

JAA sent donations of $100,000 toward Kizuna Foundation, $50,000 toward Fukushima Children Respite Visits Project (http://www.nposhalom.net/ for more information) and $5,000 toward project Tohoku Students visiting NY during Spring break in March by North Council of Teachers of Japanese (president Mr. Kazuo Tsuda, UNIS).

SAVE THE DATE of JUNE 6
the 43rd Annual Scholarship Dinner

SAVE THE DATE of JUNE 6 the 43rd Annual Scholarship Dinner will be held on Thursday, June 6, 2013 at the Harvard Club in Manhattan. The keynote speaker is Columbia University Professor Gerald Curtis.

At that dinner we plan to present a new scholarship in honor of former Consul General Shinichi Nishimiya, Japanese Ambassador to China designate, who unfortunately passed away in September 2012. If you would like to join us in making a contribution to the scholarship fund, please check below,
www.jaany.org/nishimiya_scholarship.html.

Mrs. Nishimiya has been invited to present the Scholarship at the dinner.
JAA 43rd General Scholarships for graduating high school students of Japanese descent living in the tri-state area who are applying to United States institutions of higher learning. Check www.jaany.org/general_scholarship.html,

2013 Honjo Scholarship Awards for full-time students (except in the medical, music, or art field) who will be attending graduate schools in greater New York are invited to apply. Candidates don’t have to be JAA members. Not limited to students of Japanese ancestry. Dead line is March 1, 2013. Check www.jaany.org/honjo_scholarship.html

(l to r)Mr. Ono、Amb. Hiroki、Mr. Moriwaki and Mr. Kano

2013 New Year’s Greetings Party

This annual event sponsored by the Consulate General and cosponsored by the JAA, the Nippon Club and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of NY was held on January 10 at the Nippon Club with more than 250 people in attendance. Greetings were given by Ambassador Hiroki, Mr. Ono of JCCI, Mr. Kano of Nippon Club and our President Moriwaki who also led the Kanpai.

(l to r) Mr. Moriwaki and Mr. Komeno

Mr. Karino

JAA New Year Reception and
Annual General Meeting

We had our Annual General Meeting after New Year reception with 60 members on January 24, 2013 at the JAA Hall. Mr. Katsuo Takeda was the M.C. for the New Year reception; our president Mr. Moriwaki and Consul Kentaro Ando made New Year Greetings, Consul Ando is leaving NY, JAA will have a farewell party for his generous support of JAA on March 8, at JAA Hall. We awarded Mr. Kenichi Komeno for his many years of dedicated and outstanding support as treasurer of JAA.
At this general meeting, the financial report was followed by the introduction of the Honorary Officers and Committee Chairpersons. All were approved. We also introduced our JAA officers and new directors for 2013.
We appreciate Ms. Chizuko Korn for her beautiful flower arrangement for this occasion.

Honorary Advisor：Ambassador Shigeyuki Hiroki
Consulate General of Japan in New York
Honorary Members：
Seiei Ono – President of Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of New York
Takashi Kano – President of the Nippon Club
Life Trustees：Robert K. Emy, Jiro Murase, Noboru Sato,
Seiichi Shimomura
Advisor: Toshio Kiso
Honorary President：Susan J. Onuma

Officers
President: Gary S. Moriwaki

Vice Presidents:
Julie Azuma, David Hiromura, Keiko Ishida, Makoto Iwahara, M.D., Yusuke Iwasaki, Tsuneko Mitsunaka, Satoru Murase, Joe Oshima, Seiko Oshima, Suki Terada Ports, Koji Sato, Katsuo Takeda

Secretary: Koji Sato
Assistant Secretary: David Hiromura
Treasurer: Joe Oshima
Assistant Treasurer: Julie Azuma

Directors
Masazumi Adachi, M.D., Yuzuru Anzai, M.D., Yoshikatsu Aoyagi, Roy Ashikari, M.D.,
Julie Azuma, Michiko Ito Crampe, Ken Egawa, Robert K. Emy, M.D., Tetsuya Fujita,
Tak Furumoto, Kumiko Hasegaw, Keiichiro Hayashi, David Hiromura, George Hirose* (New),
Shunichi Homma, M.D., Koji Ichida, Saeko Ichinohe, Keiko Ishida, Mozart H. Ishizuka,
Riki Ito, Makoto Iwahara, M.D., Yusuke Iwasaki, Shuji Kato, Takayoshi Kato, Toshio Kiso,
Nobuko Kodama, Emiko A. Lindsay, Kuni Mikami, Tsuneko Mitsunaka, Gary S. Moriwaki,
Satoru Murase, Nobuko Cobi Narita, Michiyo Noda, James Nolan, Robert Norton, Toru Okamoto,
Hiroko Onoyama, Susan J. Onuma, Joe Oshima, Seiko Oshima, Suki Terada Ports,
Kamal Ramani, M.D., Yoko Sasaki, Koji Sato, Kinichi Shibutani, M.D., Matsuko Shibuya,
Toshiteru Tada, Michi Tahara, Katsuo Takeda, Aileen Yamaguchi, Robert Yanagisawa M.D.

*New Director :George Hirose
George Hirose is an Associate Professor in the Photography Dept. at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York and freelance professional photographer. He is also very active in the Japanese / Japanese American community in NYC. Aside from being a supporter of JAA he is also involved with JAJA (Japanese Americans and Japanese in America), and the JACL. He also serves on the Organization Committee for Japanese Heritage Night for the New York Mets at Citifield.
For more information go to at www.georgehirose.com

* Long time director Mr. Tsutomu Karino and Mr. Setsuji Uematsu resigned from JAA’ s board of directors.
Mr. Tsutomu Karino had been Vice President of the Nippon Club and Executive Director and Secretary of Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry of New York for 35 years. During his term, he had supported JAA and he started New Year Luncheon for Seniors at the Nippon Club 22 years ago.
Mr. Setsuji Uematsu had supported JAA as a member of the JAA Charity Golf Tournament.
JAA thanks them for their long years of dedication.

Committee Chairs

Standing Committees
Planning & Finance: David Hiromura, Susan Onuma
Membership-Corporate: David Hiromura
Membership-Individual: Susan J. Onuma
JAA News: Julie Azuma, Koji Sato, Michiyo Noda
Archives: Julie Azuma, Michiyo Noda
Social Service: Seiko Oshima, Aileen Yamaguchi
Scholarship: Satoru Murase
House: JAA Office
Legal: Koji Sato

Special Committees
External Affairs: David Hiromura, Susan Onuma
Audit: Toshio Kiso, Kumiko Hasegawa
Music Awards: Joe Oshima
Year End Dinner Dance: Tsuneko Mitsunaka and
JAA Business Women’s Committee
Art Exhibition: Yoko Sasaki, George Hirose
Honjo Scholarship: Susan Onuma
Sports & Baseball Tournament: Shuji Kato
Memorial Day Service: Katsuo Takeda
Japanese Language: Nobuko Kodama
Charity Golf: David Hiromura, Michi Tahara
Bazaar/Flea Market: JAA Office
Sakura Matsuri at Flushing Meadow, Corona Park:
Yusuke Iwasaki, Suki Terada Ports
Committee on Aging Issues: Susan Onuma
Business Women’s Committee: Keiko Ishida
Apple Kids: Hiroyuki Takenaga
Young Professional Committee: Susan Onuma
Nominating: Toshio Kiso

JAA vice president and president and founder of Different Roads to Learning and DRL Books, Inc, Julie Azuma will be in Japan to visit Fukushima prefecture to view recovery and reconstruction this March as a member Japanese American Leadership delegation program.

Renewal of Membership for 2013

JAA membership renewal forms have been sent to you in the end of December. We are organizing information of our members for emergency purposes and to upgrade our services. Kindly complete the renewal form if you have had any changes, otherwise, please just return the form back with your membership fee. Members’ information will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed to outsiders except in an emergency. If you didn’t receive our renewal form by now, please contact JAA office.

JAA Social Service Committee

February Kerokai on Feb. 14 at 12pm– Menu was "Chicken over Rice" "Potato Salad" "Clear Soup" and "Ice Cream".

Hinamatsuri Keirokai on Feb. 28 12pm– "Eel over Rice Clear Soup" and "Milk Jelly" are on the menu.

3/14 & 3/28 will be our Keiro Kai in March.
Please make reservations to attend a luncheon/ or consultations and lunch deliveries.

Donation

Thank you very
much for your support of JAA !
Thanks to Corporate Supporters in 2012
Ajinomoto USA, Inc.
All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd.
American Airlines
Bingham McCutchen Murase
Brother International Corp.
Canon U.S.A.
Cook Pine LLP
Eisai USA Foundation
Fujsankei Communications Int’l
IACE Travel
ITO EN (North America) Inc.
Japanese Medical Society of America
JCCI Fund of Japanese Chamber of
Commerce and Industry of NY, Inc.
JFC International, Inc.
JTB International Inc.
Kajima Foundation
Kawasaki Heavy Industries
Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
Mitsubishi Corp. (Americas)
Mitsubishi Gas Chemical America, Inc.
Mitsui USA Foundation
Mitsui & Co., (U.S.A.), Inc.
NHK Cosmomedia America, Inc.
NRS Logistics Inc.
Orient Corp. of America
ORIX USA
Pasona NA, Inc.
REDGETX, Inc.
Sojitz Corp. of America
Sony Corp. of America
Sumitomo Corp. of America
Sunrise Mart
The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.
T.I.C. Group
Tokio Marine Management
Toshiba America Inc.
Toyota Motor North America
Wine of Japan Import, Inc.

Report from Membership Committee as 2/8/13
Platinum ($2,000):Robert K. Emy, MD, Toshio Kiso,
Jiro Murase, Satoru Murase

Gold ($1,000): Hiroko Onoyama, Noboru Sato

Silver ($500): Reiko Asanuma, Roy Ashikari, MD,
Keiichi Fujii, Keiko Ishida, Kumiko Hasegawa,
Hitoe Hayashida, Toru Okamoto,
Kozo Osaki, Naomi Sato (Sony),
Hiromi Shinya, MD and Junko Emy, MD

Supporting ($300): Tomoo Abe, Julie Azuma, Michiko Ito Crampe,
Ken Egawa, Tetsuya Fujita, Tomoko T. Hanway,
Mozart H. Ishizuka, Riki Ito, Yusuke Iwasaki,
Takayoshi kato, Tokuo Kawamoto,
Tadayoshi Konegawa, Yuichiro Kuwama, MD,
Teresa Kiso, Alyce Matsumoto, Kuni Mikami,
Tatsuji Namba, MD, Michiyo Noda, Fusako Ota,
Kamal Ramani, MD, Motoatsu Sakurai,
Yoko Sasaki, Tamiko Sato, Koji Sato
Kinichi Shibutani, MD, Matsuko Shibuya,
Noriko Tabata, Toshiteru Tada, Michi Tahara,
Raymond Taylor and Ayako Uchiyama

Regular scheduled events & programs
*Senior Luncheon : Twice a month 2nd & 4th Thursday
*Apple Kids (www.applekidsnyc.org) and
Japanese Business Women’s Committee
(www.bwcjaa.org) will have monthly events.
*Free Consultation: JAA provides free consultations
by professionals for all the people in the community.
* Free Consultation on Medical and Social welfare
By Dr. Kinichi Shibutani and Ms. Aileen Yamaguchi
on the days of senior luncheons
* Free Legal Consultation on Wills and other topics
by Helen Irie, Esq. and Reiko Takikawa, Esq.
on 4th Thursday on Odd Months
*Free Legal Consultation (excluding Immigration law)
by Reiko Kasano, Esq.
2nd Thursday on Even months
* Free Legal Consultation on Immigration Law
by James Nolan Law Office, James Nolan, Esq.
3rd Thursday of every month
* Free Consultation on Tax
by Joe Oshima, CPA on Jan.23, Feb. 6 & 21

JAA Activities in 2013

Obituary

JAA member, Mr. Hiroshi Fujiuchi passed away on January 17, 2013 at the age of 70. He had worked as a photograph retoucher for more than 30 years in the New York area.