J-Sei Engages in Park Planning
NORTH BASIN STRIP – Berkeley Shoreline

YOUR VOICE MATTERS.  Join us as we explore the North Basin Strip, an area along the Berkeley Shoreline proposed for development by the Eastshore State Park. The North Basin Strip is the portion of the McLaughlin Eastshore State Park located south of the Gilman Sports Fields in Berkeley. It is approximately 20 acres and includes 2,800 linear feet of shoreline.

Come meet Christine Hikido, J-Sei’s representative in the New Voices Program. Christine has worked for nonprofits across the Bay Area and currently works as a grants specialist at RYSE Youth Center in Richmond. She recently finished UC Berkeley’s Master of City Planning program and is interested in getting more involved in the local community and the park planning process.

Help us get outdoors, get involved, and envision a place along the shoreline for all to enjoy.

We are planning for day trips to local parks in the East Bay and SF.  And will host a walk at the North Basin Strip.  Check back in.

TOPAZ STORIES

Exhibit extended to January 31, 2025

Gallery Open: Mondays & Thursdays, 10 am to 4 pm; Friday, 10 am to 1 pm

Or by appointment, group or docent tours available. Contact jill@j-sei.org

While a few of the stories in this exhibit were displayed in the Utah State Capitol in 2022, all are being exhibited in California for the first time. The stories provide intensely personal accounts of the forced removal; daily camp life; the dispersal of the Japanese American community through the resettlement program; the heroism of Nisei soldiers with families incarcerated behind barbed wire; the challenges of returning to California after the War; and the impact of the camp experience on survivors and subsequent generations, decades later.

The exhibit and events are presented by the Topaz Stories team and Friends of Topaz Museum, with support from J-Sei.

Program Schedule 2024 – see video recordings of past programs

Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024 – Children of Topaz: Stories and Art, a kid-oriented program (adults
are welcome!) with Dana Shew and special guests, held  in conjunction with J-Sei’s
annual “Family Day.” 

Watch on J-Sei YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/Ah4-TvMOV2c 

Thursday, Oct. 3 – Dispersed: The WWII Scattering of the Japanese American Community.
stories by Jun Dairiki, Jean Hibino, Mitsi Nakamizo Fuchigami, and Joseph Nishimura 

Watch on J-Sei YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/bDjR2a8ci4A 

Sunday, Oct. 13 – The Lost Sketches of Topaz: Ella Honderich’s Topaz Years by Ella’s
granddaughter, Cynthia Wright

Watch on J-Sei YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/ONyGdEGlLlY 

Thursday, Nov. 7 – Soldiers’ Stories by Eugene Takei, Tracy Takayanagi Hui, and Ruth Sasaki

Watch on J-Sei YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/EoJKstWJKOg  

Saturday, Nov. 23 – Wartime Friends and Allies of Japanese Americans, stories by Frank
Kami, Jonathan Hirabayashi, Doris Yagi, and Jon Yatabe and Ruth Sasaki

Thursday, Dec. 5 – Return to California: Stories of Postwar Resettlement by Kazuko Iwahashi, Michi Mukai, Harue Minamoto, and Meri Mitsuyoshi 

Watch on J-Sei YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/nbrV_RJiXqk