Jul.-Sep. 2017

Mr. Alan Gilbert

Ms. Ailyn Perez

We are celebrating the 110th Anniversary of JAA-NY on Friday, December 1st at the prestigious Metropolitan Club on 60th and Fifth Avenue. Our Honorees are Maestro Alan Gilbert and Mitsui & Co. (U.S.A.), Inc. We are privileged to have the Metropolitan Opera Soprano Ailyn Perez accompanied on the piano by Ken Noda.

Please join us in support of the future of JAA.
Silent auction donations are welcome.

One table
Platinum: $20,000
Gold: $15,000
Silver: $10,000
Bronze: $7,500
Individual: $500

Will & others by Helen Irie, Esq. and Reiko Takikawa Esq.	Social Security Mr. Toru Hayama	Japanese Pension Mr. Shunji Ichikawa	Keeping safe in NY by NY Consulate General of Japan
Mr. Joe Oshima CPA.	Parents & Kids	Dr. Yamano	Dementia Prevention workshop
Training by Kazama	Hair cut for senior	JAA Chorus	Share: Women’s Health
Origami	Haiku	Isabella Geriatric Center visiting	Keiro kai

We are so pleased to rename "Senior Month" to the Autumn Health Fair as many of the programs are for all ages. The Fair was held from September 8th through October 7th at the JAA Community Center. JAA-NY co-sponsors this event with JAMSNET (Japanese Medical Support Network) and the Consulate General Of Japan in New York and with the collaboration of many local experts. More than 1850 participants attended 74 programs for all ages. The programs included workshops on social welfare, estate planning, health, nutrition, and safety, along with culture, food and film.

JAPAN Disaster Relief Fund

Tono Magokoro Net & Japanese Children Society

JAA-NY donated $50,000 to the Tono Magokoro Net, a Tono City disaster relief volunteer network established by Tono citizens to support the Iwate Prefecture Seaboard area hit by the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Here in NYC, JAA-NY donated $4,000 to the Japanese Children Society to create cultural exchange programs for students in Tohoku.

Bobby Valentine & Kizuna Baseball Camp
Bobby Magic 2017 Ten talented young players, aged 12 to 15 from Ofunato City, were hosted by JAA, the Bobby Valentine’s Sports Academy and the Kizuna Foundation for extensive baseball training and meaningful cross-cultural exchanges in August. The young team will carry back these inspired experiences to their hometown in Tohoku, as it continues its difficult road to recovery after March 11th.
Of course we also owe so much to the efforts of MUFG’s corporate volunteers along with JAA volunteers and JAA Executive Director, Ms. Michiyo Noda. Special thanks go to Paul Theisen and his son, Leo; Chris Jordan and his son, Liam; and Dan Corbin. And last but definitely not least, thanks to Bobby Valentine for organizing this visit with JAA Honorary President Gary S. Moriwaki (in addition to their 2014 trip which took young American baseball players to Ofunato City in support of the region) and the Kizuna Foundation with Satoshi Kitahama having accompanied the boys every step of the way.


Miki Orihara and NPO Katariba

New York-based modern dancer Ms. Miki Orihara visited NPO Katariba in Tokyo and donated $2,000 which was collected at her "Dance for Japan" event held in April in NYC. This NPO supports the educational efforts in disaster-affected areas in Japan.


JAA Kyushu Earthquake Relief Fund

More than a year after the earthquakes in the areas of Kumamoto and Oita, the JAA Kyushu Earthquake Relief Fund has donated $10,000 to NPO Volunteers Design Center in Oita.

Mr. Al Ortiz	Mr. Makoto Sakamoto	Super-Senior
Mr. Nakamori	Mr. Uehara

The 24th Charity Golf Tournament was held on Monday, October 2nd, 2017, at Haworth Country Club, 5 Lake Shore Drive, Haworth, NJ. The tournament began at 9:30AM with 75 participants. The champion was Mr. Al Ortiz, who received the JAA Champion Trophy and an ANA Business Class NY-to-Tokyo round-trip ticket. Mr. Frank Hernandez placed second, and Mr. Makoto Sakamoto placed third. The Best Gross Score went to the threesome of Mr. Hernandez, Mr. Michael Saka and Ms. Michelle Choi. Mr. Kenji Nakamori won the first raffle prize of ANA Business Class NY-to-Tokyo round-trip ticket. No one claimed the Hole In One prize of $10,000 this year. Thank you very much to everyone who supported this tournament, a very important fundraising event for JAA-NY.

¡Special thanks to the following Sponsors
EALL NIPPON AIRWAYS/ANAEAnglebrook Golf ClubERyuji Funakoshi Hair Salon
EArysta LifeScience America Inc. EAsahi Beer USAEBenjamin SteakhouseEBessou Restaurant
ECastle Hotel & SpaECaddie’s Corner Golf, Inc. EDaiei Trading Co. EEgawa International
EFurumoto RealtyEHajime Restaurant EHatsuhana RestaurantEHaworth Country Club
EIACE TravelEIto En (North America)EKAORU MC Corp. EKitano New York
ELand of Plenty Chinese Restaurant EMilbon USAEMiNGLE Beauty SalonEMitchell Wolf, L.Ac.
ENippon Daido USAENRS Logistics Inc. EOguri, Kirk EOrient Corp. of AmericaEPrince Hotel
ESakura ShojiESalon Wave ESapporo Beer USAEShinbashi RestaurantEShizuka New York
ESOBA TOTTOESushi-DenESushi TsushimaETakaokayaETao Consultants
ET.I.C. Inc. (Hasaki & Sobaya) ETokyu HotelsETrend Pot NY (Japion)
EWindels Marx Lane & Mittendrof, LLPEWismettac Asian FoodsEYomitime Inc.

Champion: NIKO NIKO

2nd Place: NY SILVERS

3rd Place: RADIATORS

The baseball league’s championship game was held on Sunday, August 20th at Central Park North Meadow with the Niko Niko team winning its fifth title, its first in 26 years. It was a very exciting game!
Following the game, JAA Vice Presidents Mr. David Hiromura and Ms. Suki T. Ports and Sports Committee Co-Chairman Mr. Shuji Kato, among others, hosted the closing ceremony and awards presentation.

EChampion: NIKO NIKO
E2nd Place: NY SILVERS
E3rd Place: RADIATORS
EMVP : Iku NishijimaiNiko Nikoj
EBest Pitcher: Iku NishijimaiNiko Nikoj
EMost Home Runs (2): Robert Fernandez (Niko Niko)
@Toshiharu Takizawa (Bees)
EJAA Sprit Awards were awarded to Black Yankees. With the support of the committee and officials, the tournament was a big success. Thank you very much.
(Shuji Kato, Co-chair of Sports Committee)

On September 11 JAA-NY led a volunteer effort with members of the Japanese community to serve hundreds of people in need at Food Bank For New York City. It was an inspirational group effort of community members making time to give back to New Yorkers in remembrance of the day. Special thanks go to ITO EN for the large donation of tea, and to first-time volunteers Mark Keegan, who joined from Mitsubishi Int’l Corp. ; Camryn McGinnis, from JP Morgan; and Emily of MSTERIO.org. Thank you to Suki Terada Ports for always inspiring us to help one another, and to all the other hard-working volunteers: Gary S. Moriwaki, Hideyuki Ishii, Kenji Nakano, Nozomi Terao, Katsuo Takeda, Yoko Kitahara, Shoko Noguchi, Hiroko Shimizu, Akemi Takeda, Keiko Masubuchi, Rie Taniguchi, Toshiki Nakashige and Eiko Aono. The next volunteer date will be on March 11th, 2018.

JAA Women in Business

On September 20th, Ms. Keiko Tsuyama, a journalist, and Ms. Hiroko Watanabe, an advisor for the Eurasia Group, spoke about their experiences as working women in NY to 65 attendants.

TANABATA Festival @ Riverside Park

Stars and stargazers came out for the JAA-AAA Tanabata Festival on Saturday, July 7th.
Complete with "tanzaku" paper to write out wishes, this Japanese summertime tradition is now a stellar annual event in Riverside Park thanks to Stan Honda and Thomas Haeberle of Amateur Astronomers Association of New York, who reached out to JAA to co-organize the event. Special thanks to Suki Terada Ports for securing the park permit and cooking up a sugoi picnic bento, Susan Onuma for her kabuto creations, Tomofumi Horiki and Ayako Ohsaki of the Japanese Consulate for relaying the story of Tanabata, Julie Azuma for her tasty omusubi and humor, AAA members for sharing their passion for the stars and their mighty telescopes, and Michiyo Noda, Susan McCormac Hamaker , Yuki Kaneshige, Patricia J Kozu and Gary S. Moriwaki for looking glam in their yukatas! It was great to see people of all ages there so please come get your Tanabata on next year!

The Summer Flea Market

The Summer Flea Market was held on August 6th, and we raised $7,000. JAA deeply appreciates the volunteers’ dedication. Our next Bazaar will be on November 4th.

›On September 9th JAA member Ms. Michiyo Kigawa received the prestigious Kadokawa Haiku Award in Japan. Haiku is a Japanese short poem.

›JAA Vice President Suki Terada Ports received the Distinguished Community Service Award at Hamilton-Madison House Japanese Mental Health Clinic’s 5th Annual Benefit Dinner, which was held on October 3rd. Many directors from JAA attended the event.

From the JAA Library

Several copies of the book titled "Two Mother Lands – the story of Jiro Murase, Esq." were donated by Mr. Satoru Murase and are in JAA Library Room.

JAA/HAA Young Professionals

On Friday, Oct. 20th, the JAA/HAA Young Professionals casual networking mixer was held at Le Reve, a Mediterranean restaurant/hookah lounge at 125 East 54th Street. June’s JAA/HAA YP networking mixer brought together HAA members, JAA mentors and young, energetic attendees interested in making connections, volunteering, Japanese culture and in being part of the JAA/HAA community here in NYC. Many thanks to Jasmine Wilson (President of HAA) and Yuki Kaneshige of JAA for organizing, and Mia Wilson, Jaime Sugino, Sophie Spiegel, MUFG’s Camryn Sugita and Yumi Higashi, as well as members of the Japanese Consulate and the venue, Flora Bar in the Met Breuer, for their support!

Ms. Onuma

Donations:

›$28,000 from Mitsui U.S.A. Foundation
@JAA Social Service Program/ Keirokai and Apple kids programs,
@JAA Committee on Aging Issues
›$20,000 from Delta Air Lines
@$5,000 for JAA-Delta Air Lines Scholarship
@$15,000 for History & Communication pregrams
›$10,000 from Shigeo Kida for JAA activities
›$3,500 from ANA Senior Kai for JAA Committee on Aging Issues
›$1,000 from All prefectures Golf Tournament
Thank you very much!

July 20: Mid-Summer Keirokai
One of the seniors’ favorite dishes, Unagino Kabayaki lunch boxes (Broiled Eel over rice), was served along with vineyard cucumber, soup and sweet jelly. After Kuni Mikami’s Jazz mini concert, Iwaki Band played sing-along Japanese songs. Beautiful roses were presented to the seniors who were born in May, June and July.

Happy birthday for May

Happy birthday for June

Happy birthday for July

August 17: Keirokai
Colorful lunch boxes were specially prepared by Nijiya Market in Scarsdale. Soup and dessert were made by the JAA volunteers. There was a birthday party for those born in August, and Iwaki Band played.

Happy birthday for August

September14: 1st Keirokai
As part of the JAA Autumn Health Fair, 140 seniors enjoyed lunch and dessert. After the luncheon, Susan J. Onuma, Esq. and Michiyo Noda presented
"Discussion: Living Alone & How to Enjoy Your Golden Years."
September28: 2nd Keirokai
On the menu were ginger pork, potato salad, miso soup & ice cream. Opera Director Ms. Anna Tsuri spoke about her upcoming production. The Iwaki Band played the nice music as well.

Happy birthday for September

Iwaki Band

1st Keirokai

EDr. Junko Seiki Emy passed away at Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn, NY on August 18th, 2017, from complications of a stroke. She was 83 years old. For more about her, please see below.

EMrs. Katsuko Nakasone Bolster passed away at her home on August 8th, 2017. She was 85 years old. She came to NY in 1964 as a companion at Japanese Pavilion at the World’s Fair, Flushing Meadows Park. She married in 1967 and worked at the Bank of Tokyo for many years. After her retirement, she filled her days with many volunteer activities such as the JAA mailing team, mosaic tile classes at the senior center and singing with the JAA chorus.

EOur oldest member, Mr. Haruo Ito, passed away at his home on October 3rd, 2017. He was 105 years old. The memorial service was held on October 15th at JAA Hall. He was born in Seattle, raised in Japan, and returned to the States a few years before the war. He met his future wife, Mary Meriko Uyehara, while they were incarcerated at Manzanar Camp; they later married in New York. He is survived by his daughter, Yuriko "Riki" Ito.

Vol.76

Dr. Junko Seiki Emy

Dr. Junko Emy was born on October 18, 1933 to Yoshinori Seiki and Utako Seiki in Hiroshima, Japan. When she was 2 years old, the family moved to Nagasaki because her father had a taken a teaching position in the Physics department at Nagasaki University. Ten years later they moved to Tokuyama. She began her study of medicine at Nagasaki University Faculty of Medicine, transferring to Kyushu University two years later. She completed the requirements of her medical degree in 1958, beginning the journey of her distinguished medical career. She was one of only two women to be admitted to a class of more than 90 students. As one of 20 students to be accepted for a Fulbright Scholarship, she interned at Milwaukee County Hospital in Wisconsin from 1959 to 1960.

In 1960, she moved to New York City, where she completed her residency in Neurology at Montefiore Hospital at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, followed by an NIH fellowship. Through a friend, she was introduced to her husband, Dr. Robert Keiji Emy, then a naval doctor in Newport, Rhode Island. They married in 1961 and settled in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. From her home office, she practiced family medicine and served the Japanese community in the greater New York City area. She was highly respected for her clinical acumen and devotion to her patients. After nearly 40 years in practice, she regretfully retired due to a long illness. She and her husband moved to Park Slope to be closer to the family of their son, John, and to enjoy retirement in the company of their grandchildren. Her final year of life may have been restricted physically, but she was able to take pleasure in local outings and was cared for lovingly by her family and caregivers.

She is survived by her husband, Dr. Robert K. Emy; her son, Dr. John K. Emy; her daughter, Dr. Margaret Y. Emy; her sisters Shizue Hori, Atsuko Kamimoto, Yoko Furutani, Yaeko Seiki, and Ikuyo Higuchi; and her grandchildren Anna Emy, Cecilia Emy, Sophia Emy, Mia Emy, Matthew Yang and Isabel Yang.