Tonari Gumi / 隣組

Dinner ticket sales for the combined 100 years of service anniversary dinner are going very well, but if you haven’t purchased your tickets yet, ticket sales come to an end at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4^th.  Chibi Taiko will open the evening as we start the 10 course gourmet Chinese dinner being prepared by the Pink Pearl Chinese Restaurant.  They will be followed by Joy Kogawa’s keynote address, nostalgic presentations by Takeo Yamashiro and Gordon Kadota, and a Japanese musical presentation with two koto’s (Kozue Matsumoto and Yuriko Nariya) and a shakuhachi (Minoru Yamamoto).   There will be an amazing silent auction and a raffle with great prizes.  In addition to being a great gathering of the Japanese Canadian community, all of the net proceeds will go towards completing the extensive renovations being undertaken at the new Seniors’ Drop-In and Community Outreach Centre being jointly funded by Tonari Gumi and the JCCA.  Come and have a great time while supporting the creation of a new Centre for the community!  Tickets can be purchased on-line at http://tonarigumi.ca/100-years-of-service-anniversary-dinner-june-8-2013/ or by contacting the Tonari Gumi office at (604) 687-2172.

One of the amazing items being offered in our silent auction is an exclusive woodblock print by the renowned Japanese Canadian artist, Taiga Chiba:

'Squid Heaven' by Taiga Chiba

Chiba Taiga the artist.

To see other silent auction items, please click on this link.

On Saturday, May 4th, in conjunction with the Steveston Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, Tonari Gumi held a “Crisis Preparedness” seminar in Japanese for seniors and their family members.  Some 26 interested individuals attended to learn how to prepare for the unexpected, in particular with regard to representation agreements, powers of attorney, wills, etc.

Shihori making her presentation in Steveston.

The presentation was given by Shihori, Community Service worker at Tonari Gumi, and included handouts and a helpful set of real-life examples that elicited many questions from the group as they related the examples to their own lives.  Tonari Gumi expresses its appreciation for the support and assistance given by Kelvin Higo to make this event a success.  Tonari Gumi will be working with the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre to hold other seminars of interest to the community in Steveston in the near future.  Individuals interested in participating in these seminars in both English and Japanese are asked to contact Kelvin Higo or the Tonari Gumi office at 604-687-2172.

Joy Kogawa

On Saturday, June 8, starting at 6:00 p.m. at the Pink Pearl Chinese Restaurant, Joy Kogawa will be the keynote speaker at Tonari Gumi’s 40th and the Greater Vancouver JCCA’s 60th Anniversary dinner.  Please join us in celebrating 100 years of service to the Japanese Canadian community and contribute to Tonari Gumi’s new seniors’ drop-in and community outreach centre being created at 42 West 8th Avenue in Vancouver.

Joy Kogawa is the keynote speaker at this gala event because she has prominently represented the community and it’s history to all Canadians and to all the world.  Joy Kogawa’s best known work is a semi-autobiographical novel, Obasan.  Obasan has been named as one of the most important books in Canadian history by the Literary Review of Canada and was also listed by The Toronto Star in a “Best of Canada” feature.  Obasan was later adapted into a 45-minute opera that toured elementary schools throughout British Columbia.  In 1986, Kogawa was made a Member of the Order of Canada and in 2006 she was made a Member of the Order of British Columbia.  In 2010, the Japanese government honored Kogawa with the Order of the Rising Sun for her contribution to the understanding and preservation of Japanese Canadian history.

If you would like to attend this important milestone event while contributing to Tonari Gumi’s continuing services for seniors in the Japanese Canadian community, please click here to purchase tickets online.  To purchase tickets directly or for more information contact: Tonari Gumi, (604) 687-2172 or e-mail at info@tonarigumi.ca.

Tonari Gumi and the Greater Vancouver JCCA will be co-hosting their first joint golf tournament on Saturday, July 20th at the Meadow Gardens Golf Course in Pitt Meadows.  There will be prizes and a buffet banquet dinner at Meadow Gardens following the tournament.  The entry fees are $160 each and $640 for a foursome.  A charitable tax donation receipt will be available from Tonari Gumi for a portion of the entry fee.  All net proceeds will go to the joint Tonari Gumi-JCCA “Home Away from Home” Building Fund to complete the renovations to the new Tonari Gumi Seniors’ drop-in and Community Outreach Centre at 42 West 8th Ave. in Vancouver. By participating in this event, you are helping to build a stronger, vibrant and more caring Japanese Canadian community.

Registration can be phoned into the following:  Shag Ando (604-922-9226), Ed Teranishi (604-276-2192), Michael Yamamoto (604-720-3915), Derek Iwanaka (604-928-2797), Katsuko Shioiri (604-649-5880), Ken Nishi (604-521-4055), Perry Nishihata (604-812-1850), the Tonari Gumi office (604-687-2172) or obtain your own registration forms by clicking onto the following link:  Golf Tournament.

Construction work is moving forward at Tonari Gumi’s new facilities at 42 West 8th Avenue in Vancouver, just west of Main Street, between Ontario and Manitoba Streets. Work is progressing on the main floor and the new elevator to be installed to enable universal access to all three floors in the new facility. Current projections are for construction work to be completed by the end of July of this year with move-in scheduled for the month of August. We are hoping to be able to start Tonari Gumi’s Fall programs in the new facilities.  For those of you who haven’t contributed to our “Home Away from Home” Building Fund Drive in order to complete these renovations, please click here.