JASSC Membership Potluck and BBQ THIS SATURDAY! Location: Golden Lotus Foundation Asian Heritage Center, 1819 W Cheyenne Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 Saturday, August 3rd, 11 am - 1:30pm Members can still RSVP here or email Kathy Kidd at Kathy@JapanAmerica.org. If you need to renew your membership, please visit our membership table that day. Please bring a side dish to share, and folks are encouraged to bring their own lawn chair as we're expecting a big crowd this year! See here for more information including parking instructions. | | | | | Call for Event Committee Members We need you to help us make an impact in the community! JASSC is looking for planning committee members for various projects and events like the Bazaar, Mochitsuki, Children’s Day, and more! Please email Jennifer@JapanAmerica.org for more information or to express interest. | | | | | Japanese Cultural Bazaar Save the date! This year’s annual Japanese Cultural Bazaar will be held on Saturday, October 26th at UCCS. We are now accepting applications for vendors, performers, volunteers, and this year, workshop facilitators! Based on feedback from last year’s bazaar, we would like to provide more cultural enrichment opportunities and are reaching out to our wonderful JA community to make that happen.
So if you are interested in participating in any of those categories, please fill out the form here. | | | | | Conversation Over Cookies Come practice your Japanese with us! The next meeting is on Saturday, August 10 from 1:30 - 3:00 pm at Library 21C in the CreateSpace. This time, we’ll also be joined by the Colorado Springs Kaiwa Club too! Free to all JASSC members! Non-members are welcome to join with $5 donation. Space is limited, so please RSVP to Sachiko at s.snow2207@gmail.com. Please indicate if you are a Japanese speaker who is willing to volunteer. | | | Go TournamentElevation Go is holding the 2024 Colorado State Championship tournament here in Colorado Springs in September! Sign-up for the tournament is free; however, competitors must be registered with the AGA (American Go Association) with an up-to-date membership. Please email your full name, AGA number, and AGA rating to Elevationgoclub@gmail.com. Date: September 7, 2024
Location: Penrose Library, 20 N Cascade Ave, Colorado Springs, CO Sign-in time: 9:00 AM Tournament Time: 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM This tournament will stand as the 2024 Colorado State Championship! The Open Division competitor with the best record will be named the Colorado State Champion.The top two competitors in each division will be eligible for prizes! Many wonderful sponsors have generously offered vouchers and prizes to each winner! | | | JUMP event September 14, 2024 (Note this event is still tentative; watch for a later email) JUMP (Japan US Military Program) will host this special program to honor those who have served in Japan and will serve in Japan. The JUMP event is sponsored by The Sasakawa Peace Foundation. If you are interested in volunteering for this event, please contact Wayne Stout at wayne@japanamerica.org | | | | | | | Sangre de Cristo Arts Center Exhibit Portrait of Nature: Myriads of Gods June 7, 2024 - January 11, 2025 Learn more here | | | | | | | Spirit of Japan Festival August 23rd - 25th, 2024 Sakura Square: 1255 19th St, Denver, CO 80202 This event in Denver features several kinds of Japanese festival food, and a sake and spirits tasing. General admission tickets begin at $55 per person. Learn more on their website: www.spirit-jpn.com/denver | | | | | Nominate our Next Treasurer We are still seeking a new Treasurer for the board! If you know someone who has passion for our community, some experience with financial matters, and would like to build experience by working with a board, please nominate them by emailing Board@JapanAmerica.org. | | | General Economic and Political Updates for 2024 The Sister Cities International has provided a PowerPoint overview of general economic and political updates for 2024 Please see the attached PDF: Link to PowerPoint | | | Member Profile -- Kaori Katsumata | | | This month’s featured member is Kaori Katsumata. She has been a member of JASSC since the very beginning in 1998, at which time she was a teaching assistant for founder Paul Maruyama at Colorado College. She has made countless contributions to our numerous events, most notably Children’s Day in May. Kaori always has a sunny smile on her face, and seems to find the good in everything. We are grateful for her dedication and love for JASSC, and asked her to share a little more about herself with us. Tell us a little bit about yourself. I was born and raised in our sister city, Fujiyoshida. I fell in love with people and nature in Colorado Springs when I first visited with my mom and my sister, accompanying the Fujiyoshida mayoral delegation group in 1992 for the celebration of the 30th sister-cities celebration. After graduating college, I came to Colorado Springs and became involved with Colorado College, where I eventually served as the Japanese assistant at the Japan House. I was the first person from Fujiyoshida to hold the position. Living in a foreign country was not easy at times, but I made it through all these years, being supported by not only family members, but also countless, warm-hearted people including JASSC friends, to whom I'd like to express my heartfelt gratitude. I live here with my husband, Dan and our teenage son, Shogo. They both enjoy Japanese foods and Dan, especially, claims his stomach is 95% Japanese.
What’s your reason for being a part of JASSC? It is wonderful to meet people who share any interest in Japan. People teach me about my country all the time. Also, we are all carrying the torch from the JASSC founders with their peaceful vision for the society, bringing cultural understanding between our two countries. Whatever role we play, each energy keeps the light brighter! What are your hobbies and interests? My interests are arts in general, gardening, learning about mysteries, invisible energies and ancient civilizations. Believe or not, I have seen UFOs in this town before! Any other cool facts about yourself? During the era I was born, my hometown was prospering with the textile industry, and I grew up hearing the sound of the textile machines everywhere. In fact, the Kanji character "o-ri" in my name is from a term "ori-mono (textile)". Both of my grandmothers were trained as textile weavers as young adults. My maternal grandfather was a textile dyeing developer for "saki-zome", and my paternal grandfather was a Fujiyoshida city councilman. | | | Other Interesting Organizations Want more news? Check out these other organizations supporting Asian Americans in Colorado and beyond!
- Golden Lotus Foundation - The GLF is working hard to build a botanical garden and tea house in Colorado Springs. They are always looking for volunteers, so sign up for their newsletter if you are interested!
- NAJAS - the National Association of Japan America Societies is the hub of all other JAS in the US.
- Japan America Society of Colorado (Denver) - JASC is our closest sibling organization, with most of their happenings located in Denver. They have a community e-bulletin which they send out monthly as well.
- El Pomar Foundation - Elevating Leadership Development Program. The ELD program is run by the El Pomar foundation and creates "greater access and support for people of color in Southern Colorado to tap into their leadership potential for the benefit of community." Their quarterly meetings are free to attend and convene advisory councils for the following groups: Asian / Pacific Islander, Black, Hispanic, and Native American.
-
- Asian Pacific Islander Business Community of Colorado Springs - this new organization is building better connections to and awareness of Asian-led businesses in Colorado Springs. The link is to their linktree, which includes a newsletter signup.
| | | | | About JASSC JASSC web site Send us your news! Let us know what you’d like to see in the next newsletter. Please email the editor, Rayna Lindsey
rayna@japanamerica.org Did you know that you can edit your own address, phone and email information right on the japanamerica.org website? Simply enter your email and password in the upper-right corner and click Login. Don't know your password? Click Forgot Password and the website will help you out. You will also find a secure password-protected online member directory. Use it to look up names, addresses, phone numbers and emails for other members.
| | | |
.png)
