Haruko Obata: A Life of Flowers

Haruko Obata: A Life of Flowers

Haruko Obata: A Life of Flowers

Saturday, September 9, 2 pm — In-Person and Online

“If you know flower arranging you do not grow old, for it is eternal.” Haruko Obata

Haruko Obata (1892-1989) was a pioneering Bay Area ikebana sensei who began displaying her classic Japanese flower arrangements to Americans as early as 1915. Kimi Hill will share her grandmother’s story based on a 1986 oral history, exploring Haruko’s youth in Japan as well as her life as the wife of artist Chiura Obata and a mother of four children,
her forced incarceration at Topaz, and her long career as an artist in her own right. Assisting in this presentation will be Sogetsu Ikebana teacher Keiko Kubo and J-Sei ikebana students who will create ikebana arrangements to accompany the program. Presented by Friends of Topaz Museum and J-Sei.

Please reserve a free ticket to receive reminders and a ZOOM link.

J-Sei’s Family Festival 2023

J-Sei’s Family Festival 2023

J-Sei’s Family Festival

Sunday, September 24, 12-3 pm

J-Sei, 1285 66th Street, Emeryville (btwn Hollis St & San Pablo Av)

Each year we celebrate “Keiro no Hi” respect for the aged day, a time to honor our elders and celebrate with our multigenerational families.

Pre-0rdersare now closed.  The menu items will be available for walk-up sales at the festival.

Festival Schedule

11 am – Book Reading with Mystery Writer Naomi Hirahara on “Evergreen”

12 pm – Berkeley Buddhist Temple Taiko

12:30 pm – Cal Hawaii Club

1 pm – Book Signing with Naomi Hirahara, Eastwind Books booth

1 pm – Daruma no Gakko and J-Sei Intergen Choir

1:30 – Taiso Experience

1:45 – Let’s Groove

2:00 – Community Ukulele

 

Booths & Activities

Daruma no Gakko, Eastwind Books, Setsunai Snacks

Shared Cultures, Summer Scarves by Koko

Watercolor Meditations, paintings by Gerry Furuzawa, Karen Allen, and Wendy Kiniris (Gallery)

Senior Cuts by JR Studios and Chiha Hair (2nd floor) – by appointment

 

 

Festival Menu

Taco rice $16 – ground beef , lettuce, cheese, fresh salsa and avocado crema over koshihikari rice

Salmon Batayaki $18 – salmon marinated in butter hawaiian marinade, with sauteed mushrooms, onions with rice and mac salad

Katsu Dog $18 –  pork katsu with savoy cabbage, tonkatsu aioli & pickled red onions in an Acme bun w/ a side of baby smashed potatoes

Korroke Dog $15 – vegetable croquette with savoy cabbage, tonkatsu aioli & pickled red onions in an Acme bun w/ a side of baby smashed potatoes

Vegetable Curry Rice $10

Kids bento $8 – chicken teri, broccoli and rice

Pre-order is now closed.

The above menu items will be available for walk-up sales. First come, first served.  We look forward to seeing you at the festival.

Parking will be available (from 10 am-4 pm) at the Fratellanza Club, located 1/2 block up, next to McDonald’s.  Look for the J-Sei Parking sign on the cyclone fence.

Featured Book Event with Naomi Hirahara

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

Sunday, September 24, 11 am (in-person & online)

With great anticipation, Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery continues the post-war resettlement story of Aki Ito who returns with her family from Manzanar to Chicago to Los Angeles. Meet dynamic mystery writer Naomi Hirahara as she shares her latest book that follows the award-winning Clark and Division. Come early and join us in the Atrium for the book talk.

RSVP via Eventbrite

“Hirahara humanizes the struggles of Japanese Americans rebuilding their lives from scratch. Her evocation of Little Tokyo haunts will bring a flood of memories for some Angelenos while introducing a new generation of readers to a pivotal period in L.A. history.” —Paula Woods, The Los Angeles Times

About the Book

A Japanese American nurse’s aide navigates the dangers of post-WWII and post-Manzanar life as she attempts to find justice for a broken family in this follow-up to the Mary Higgins Clark Award–winning Clark and Division.

About the Author

Naomi Hirahara is an Edgar Award-winning author of multiple traditional mystery series and noir short stories.

Nichi Bei Review: “Murder and Emotions Unravel in Post-War Little Tokyo Mystery”

Photo by Rafu Shimpo.

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery

A Book Talk & Signing with Naomi Hirahara

Sunday, September 24, 11 am (in-person & online)

With great anticipation, Evergreen, A Japantown Mystery continues the post-war resettlement story of Aki Ito who returns with her family from Manzanar to Chicago to Los Angeles. Meet dynamic mystery writer Naomi Hirahara as she shares her latest book that follows the award-winning Clark and Division.

RSVP via Eventbrite

“Hirahara humanizes the struggles of Japanese Americans rebuilding their lives from scratch. Her evocation of Little Tokyo haunts will bring a flood of memories for some Angelenos while introducing a new generation of readers to a pivotal period in L.A. history.” —Paula Woods, The Los Angeles Times

About the Book

A Japanese American nurse’s aide navigates the dangers of post-WWII and post-Manzanar life as she attempts to find justice for a broken family in this follow-up to the Mary Higgins Clark Award–winning Clark and Division.

It’s been two years since Aki Ito and her family were released from Manzanar detention center and resettled in Chicago with other Japanese Americans. Now the Itos have finally been allowed to return home to California—but nothing is as they left it. The entire Japanese American community is starting from scratch, with thousands of people living in dismal refugee camps while they struggle to find new houses and jobs in over-crowded Los Angeles.

Aki is working as a nurse’s aide at the Japanese Hospital in Boyle Heights when an elderly Issei man is admitted with suspicious injuries. When she seeks out his son, she is shocked to recognize her husband’s best friend, Babe Watanabe. Could Babe be guilty of elder abuse?

Only a few days later, Little Tokyo is rocked by a murder at the low-income hotel where the Watanabes have been staying. When the cops start sniffing around Aki’s home, she begins to worry that the violence tearing through her community might threaten her family. What secrets have the Watanabes been hiding, and can Aki protect her husband from getting tangled up in a murder investigation?

About the Author

Naomi Hirahara is an Edgar Award-winning author of multiple traditional mystery series and noir short stories. Her Mas Arai mysteries, which have been published in Japanese, Korean and French, feature a Los Angeles gardener and Hiroshima survivor who solves crimes. Her first historical mystery, Clark and Division, which won a Mary Higgins Clark Award, follows a Japanese American family’s move to Chicago in 1944 after being released from a California wartime detention center. A former journalist with The Rafu Shimpo newspaper, Naomi has also written numerous non-fiction history books and curated exhibitions.

Nichi Bei Review: “Murder and Emotions Unravel in Post-War Little Tokyo Mystery”

Photo by Rafu Shimpo.

Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community

Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community

J-Sei’s Healthy Aging
Lung Cancer in the AAPI Community
Thursday, September 28, 2 pm (Hybrid)

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among Asian Americans according to the American Lung Association. Why are Asian American women who are non-smokers at an increased risk for getting lung cancer? What are precautions or preventative measures we can take? What are indicators and risk factors we should take into consideration?

Hear from Dr. Jeffrey Velotta, a thoracic surgeon at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center, who is raising awareness on lung cancer and the need for pre-cancer screening in the AAPI community. In addition to his clinical duties, he is a clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine.

Join us in-person at J-Sei or online via ZOOM. RSVP to jill@j-sei.org with “Lung Cancer” in the subject line.

SHAKA, A Story of Aloha

SHAKA, A Story of Aloha

Sneak Peek Film Screening

SHAKA: A Story of Aloha

Saturday, October 7th, 1 pm

“Shaka, A Story of Aloha” started as a passing curiosity when a friend introduced filmmaker Steve Sue to Kupuna (elders) in La‘ie who had a story on the origin of the Shaka gesture. It turns out that the Kupuna have kept the depths of the story secret for 3/4 of a century as they didn’t want it inappropriately commercialized. But given advancing age and a world in need, they asked him to share their story.

Once in production, multiple alternative gesture and word origin stories were revealed. As documentarians, they plan to share all the credible findings and let audiences decide for themselves on what theories they prefer. With this welcoming spirit, the film crew ventures to spread the meaning behind the shaka.

Join us in sharing this message of empowering love. Filmmaker Steve Sue will be joining us for Q&A.  Please reserve your tickets soon as space is limited. This is a free screening, all donations will support the finishing and outreach of the film.

 

Our hearts go out to the people in Maui after the devastating fire, loss of lives, homes, businesses, and community heritage sites. Please join the Hawaii Chamber of Commerce of Northern California in their support of Maui Strong and Maui Food Bank.  Now, more than ever, we are in need of the message of Aloha that this documentary uplifts.

 

   
1) Shooting interviews at kuleana lands, La’ie, Oahu. Kekela Miller, Joel “Baldy” Apuakehau & Harold Pukahi.
2) Interview of George Tanabe at Tanabe Lotus Farm, Wailuku, Hawai’i.
3) Interview of Fred Hemmings, world-champion surfer, surf event founder, retired Hawai’i State Senator.