Rio Saito,  JASM Executive Director 2018 to Current

I have been serving for JASM as the Director for a while now and always see how many people have been a part of this organization. I am standing on the platform that was built by all of the volunteers, board of directors, previous EDs, and many members. Without those people who came before me, I never would have had this great job that I am so proud to do. My contribution to this organization is just having fun with our community, with the hope that everyone is also having fun with me.

I have met so many people and gone to many places I wouldn’t have if it was not for this job, but what I always have in my mind is the young people who were a part of JASM: as interns, J-Quiz participants or volunteers who come back to me and tell me they got a job in Japan or found a job related to Japan. It always gives me so much joy to know the seeds we planted bloomed somewhere out there.

I would like JASM to continue to be a place where people can gather and share their love of Japan. We learned during the pandemic that we can reach out to so many people outside of JASM’s circle and it has been wonderful collaborating with them. I would like to continue to serve our community through JASM and create a space where everyone and anyone can be together and celebrate Japan. 

Yoko Ueno, JASM Program Manager since summer 2017 

My role at JASM is to plan JASM's events and to organize these events so that they run smoothly. Since joining JASM I have been fortunate to work with many different people like the committed staff, numerous interns, supportive board members, and many dedicated members and volunteers. All have our mission in mind and want to help connect the people of Japan and the US, especially in Minnesota. Our organization could only have existed for so many years because of these supporters.

JASM invites the recipients of the Mondale Scholarship from the previous year to attend the Mondale Award and Scholarship Gala each fall. Once a Mondale Scholar came up to me to thank JASM for the gala invitation and said, "The gala was a great opportunity for me to see where scholarship money comes from. It is very impressive to see that so many people support and donate to this program! I am now even more thankful for the scholarship I received. I want to be like these people and support students in the future." Hearing this commitment was a moving moment for me and I feel that Minnesota's future is bright; we at JASM are doing the right thing with our programs.

I hope that JASM will be able to continue providing access to learning opportunities to enrich the cultural lives of people in Minnesota through its events and programs, although the form and content of the events may change with time. I am confident that JASM will keep providing opportunities for people, whether they be Japanese, Japanese Americans, or anyone who has a connection to or an interest in Japan, to get to know, stay connected to, and learn more about Japan. 

JASM Former Executive Directors

Kathryn Klibanoff

I served as the executive director for JASM from 1997-1998 and loved my experience. We were preparing to celebrate JASM’s 25th anniversary, and Ambassador Walter Mondale had recently returned from his tenure as Ambassador to Japan. We decided to create the Mondale Award and Mondale Scholarship in his honor, and it’s very gratifying to know that these programs are still going strong.

My most memorable moment was the very first Mondale Award and Scholarship Dinner at the Minneapolis Hilton in 1998. It was a fabulous event emceed by the late Charlie Boone, a WCCO radio personality. At the event, Ambassador Mondale mentioned in his speech that he had only ever had two other things named after him to that point: a school in his hometown of Elmore, MM and a dog. Another touching remembrance is the wide variety of phone calls I’d field at the JASM office. Sometimes it would be a student looking for a conversation partner. Another time it was a Japanese ex-pat looking for a real estate lawyer. One day, a Japanese woman called, whispering in Japanese that she was getting abused by her husband and needed a safe place to go. I was able to connect her with resources to help. You never knew from day to day what calls would come in.

I wish JASM another 50+ years of success as a cultural, educational, artistic, and business hub strengthening Japan-Minnesota relations for generations to come. Omedetou gozaimasu on 50 amazing years so far! I am ever grateful to have been a part of JASM’s history.

Paul Sherburne

I was fortunate enough to be selected as the initial executive director of JASM when it made its transformation from essentially a social club of Nisei into a cross-cultural educational organization designed to encourage greater understanding of Japan; its people, society and culture. This was made possible primarily through a three-year grant from the National Association of Japan America Societies (NAJAS). The grant enabled JASM to put in place tiered individual and corporate memberships which in turn created the funds to establish many new programming initiatives.

Through the hard work of old and new volunteer members JASM greatly expanded its cultural and business related activities. In addition we were able to utilize young Japanese interns and returning JET American teachers of English and many other talented young scholars. I personally was fortunate to go to Japan twice. Once through a self-organized trip that included visits to both Minneapolis and St Paul’s Sister Cities as well the former University of Minnesota Akita Campus. These interchanges helped solidify JASM’s standing and relationships with these entities. A second trip was organized and led by the then executive director of NAJAS, and attended by a handful of other Japan America Society executive directors, that included meetings and briefings with high ranking American and Japanese scholars, business people, journalists and diplomats. A highlight was a lengthy conversation with then US Ambassador Walter Mondale. This helped legitimize JASM in the eyes of the ambassador and eased the subsequent creation of the Mondale Scholarship.

I trust that due to the talents and energy of JASM’s numerous devoted members and staff, JASM will see another 50 years of successful promotion of understanding and amity between Minnesota and Japan.

Elizabeth Simmer, Saint Paul, Minnesota

I served as an Interim Executive Director because the previous ED resigned and a job search for a permanent person to serve in this role was underway. I shared the position and drew on my strengths from my public relations degree. I had lived in Japan (Mitaka near Tokyo, Ibaraki-ken and Nagasaki City) for a few years. I was able to bring my talents to the public relations aspects of this position including writing, editing, and producing the Tsushin Newsletter. 

The ED position is varied and unpredictable from one day to the next. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting people, presenting Japanese culture to school children, and holding necessary meetings with the board and others. My co-Interim ED was excellent with the budgets, spreadsheets, and other skills required for a position such as this. I was also a board member for the Saint Paul Nagasaki Sister City Committee at the time and initiated a collaborative approach to share news and events with Minnesota-Japan related organizations in the Tsushin Newsletter, which at that time was in a paper format.

I believe the mission of JASM, to promote mutual understanding and friendship between Japanese and US citizens, hasn't changed since my time there. My hope for JASM's future is to continue in this endeavor, bringing people of all ages and opportunities to interact with one another and share mutual cooperation and rapport.

Darryl Magree

After living in Akita from 1994-1997 on the JET Programme, joining JASM helped me maintain and further my connections to Japan.  One volunteer opportunity led to another, and in 1999 I applied for the half-time position as executive director.  Little did I know how much that decision would shape my life.

There was so much I had to learn about managing a nonprofit, working with a volunteer board of directors, and building relationships.  That network made so much possible: J-Quiz was in its infancy, and would not have survived without the collective efforts of Japanese teachers; Como Park and the St. Paul-Nagasaki Sister City Committee established the Japanese Obon Festival; corporate members stepped up to host a wide range of roundtables to share business insights; and distinguished speakers - community elders, diplomats, artists, and elected officials - shared their own Japan-Minnesota connections.  

Over my six and a half year tenure, step by slow step JASM grew from its shoestring origins to a more stable organization.  Over that same period, fellow JASM member Yukiko Oshu went from acquaintance to friend to wife.  When we decided to relocate to Japan together, I was proud to hand over the reins to Ben van Lierop, and incredibly fortunate to get an unsolicited job offer from JASM board member David Smith.  

Seventeen years have passed since then.  Yukiko and I are raising our two children in Tokyo, and even though David took early retirement last year, I continue to thrive in the global business he helped build.

J. Bernard van Lierop
It was wonderful to serve as the Executive Director of JASM from 2006 to 2018. It was the best job of my career. I felt very fortunate to work with dedicated Board members who truly wanted JASM to fulfill its mission of promoting cultural understanding and international cooperation between the people of Japan and the United States in Minnesota. 

In the years that I was serving JASM, I believe that the work of volunteers had a deep impact on the success of the events that JASM provided to the community. The Obon Japanese Festival was successful with about 50 volunteers who helped to staff the booths. Volunteers were also key to the success of the J-Quiz High School Japanese language contest. Many of these volunteers were Japanese language teachers, and their students, who shared an interest in promoting Japanese language proficiency. 

Another important area was collaboration with other Japan related organizations, such as Sister City groups. JASM has had a long-term relationship with the Saint Paul – Nagasaki Sister City Committee. This partnership continues with the planning for the Obon Japanese Festival. JASM has also reached out to other sister city groups in Bloomington and Duluth, and to Japan-related organizations such as Concordia Language Villages, the Japan-American Citizens League, and the JET Alumni Association. These collaborative efforts have given JASM opportunities to provide leadership and Japanese cultural expertise. 

A third area of vital importance was education. JASM, through the Mondale Scholarship program, has inspired students to go to Japan and become Japan experts both in culture and language. The JASM internship program also provided college students with practical experience in learning how to work in a non-profit office by planning and promoting events. 

Finally, JASM was very fortunate to benefit from the leadership of the late U.S. Vice President and Ambassador Walter Mondale and Joan Mondale. They heartily supported the JASM Mondale Scholarship program by regularly attending the annual Mondale Award and Scholarship Gala. Their presence was a blessing and a legacy for JASM for generations to come. 

I am grateful for the opportunity to have served JASM and I believe the organization will continue to thrive as it fulfills its mission in serving the Japan America community in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. 

Asako Hirabayashi, Harukaze Committee

I moved to Minnesota in 2001 and met Takuzo Ishida, who was seated in the front row of the audience of my first performance here. He was the first Japanese person I met in the Twin Cities. Takuzo introduced me to the Japanese school and JASM. From that time we did many projects together. Takuzo was such a generous, energetic, passionate person and devoted himself to the Japanese community as well as classical music in Minnesota. As the president of Japanese School, he even accepted my daughter, who had serious disabilities, and gave her opportunity to learn there. Those two years represent the only time my daughter could learn with regular students in the same class room. I will never forget it. San Asato of JASM, who introduced me to a Japanese adoption agency (which is almost non-existence in Japan), so I could adopt my son from Japan. I and Takuzo invited top players from both the US and Japan and presented many wonderful concerts together at Harukaze. I have organized, performed and composed for the Harukaze Series, but the most memorable experience was founding Thunder Wave, which is the first and only Japanese children’s dance group in Minnesota to introduce Japanese traditional folk dance combined with contemporary pop music. The debut of Thunder Wave was accompanied by top players from the Minnesota Orchestra for the Harukaze.

 

Also, I premiered my first original concert opera, Yukionna, which was a sold out, standing room performance and received many positive reviews. I cannot thank JASM enough for enriching my personal life as well as my professional career. 

Tomoko Drake
I’m not exactly sure when, but I was recruited by Mr. Takuzo Ishida and became one of the JASM board members, probably at least two decades ago.  I remember I was asked to help start a new food booth for JASM at the Japanese Lantern Lighting Festival at Como Park.  Darryl was the executive director then and he brought over some gas grills and we sold Korean Style Yakiniku BBQ beef slices.  It smelled good and tasted good, but was very sticky and smokey and hard to cook.  I suggested having a Beef Bowl booth at the Festival in the following year.  As I was deeply involved with our Minneapolis Japanese School then, I asked some of my friends (aka Oyaji Club members) and their families to help us cook and sell beef bowls.  It was an unbelievable success! Many times we sold out everything, and ended up selling rice bowls with stew broth on it for $1 to the hungry crowd! 

I am not sure exactly when it started, but it became a summer tradition of our circle of Minneapolis Japanese School friends.  Fathers stood by the two large pots stewing big pots of beef and onions, and mothers managed cooking rice in dozens of  home size rice cookers. Mostly students and their siblings sold beef bowls, drinks, and some sweets at the store front.  I am not sure how many years we continued to volunteer managing the beef bowl booth, but August of 2018 was our final year. 

Those were our happy memories with the late Kaz Kuroki and Tak Ishida.  Some of our Japanese school friends left MN, and almost all the children of our group have grown up and left home. But I am happy that the rest of us remain as close friends, thanks to the volunteering time through the Minneapolis Japanese School and hot and sometimes cold Lantern Lighting Festival memories.

Thank you JASM and our dear friends!

Oyaji-Club:

Bruce & Tomoko Drake

Yukiko & Masa Kawase

Ruth & Kaz Kuroki

Ayumi Malin

Keiko & John Martin

Yuko & John Moon

Serena Moon

Naoko Koyano & Yasushi Nakagawa

Miyuki & Jim Nichols

Midori (Drake) Parks

Tamara & Dave Berg + Lucia & Remy

Mami Russel

Eri Sato

Naomi & Yoshi Sato

Tomoko Silbert

Mia Smith

Yoko & Katsu Toda

Fifty Years of JASM with Ikebana

Flowers have always been part of JASM programs. Ikebana, the arrangement of living plant material, is considered one of the many Japanese Arts. Its long history of using natural materials to create a beautiful flower arrangement is admired and studied worldwide.  

The advancement of Ikebana in the Twin Cities area was further developed with the arrival of Yoshie Suzuki Babcock.  She was welcomed and appreciated for her creative and skillful teaching of the Sogetsu School of Ikebana.  

As her outreach grew, her students showed great enthusiasm and dedication to learning more about Ikebana.  To further their studies and interactions in the community, Yoshie saw the need for a study group. The request was granted in 1996 from the Sogetsu School in Tokyo.                          

With JASM’s role and position in the community expanding, Japanese culture and arts were becoming more popular at the same time.  It was during this time that Ambassador Walter Mondale was returning from Japan and he provided inspiration for the Mondale yearly award.  The recipients of the award are recognized for their outstanding work and influence in promoting the arts and culture of Japan.

A highlight of the Sogetsu Ikebana study group was the 2013 selection of Yoshie Suzuki Babcock to receive the annual Mondale award.  The award was given in recognition of her over 40 years of teaching Ikebana and of her community outreach.

The award ceremony was well attended by Yoshie’s students and friends.  It is the custom for the study group to provide table arrangements and a large arrangement each year for the event.  

JASM serves a unique purpose and fulfills its mission in promoting varied aspects of Japan and US relations.  Members come together in a common goal of support via education, culture, and business networking. The Ikebana Sogetsu Study Group has contributed to many events in conjunction with JASM.  The Mondale Gala, Harakuze event, Obon (Lantern Lighting), and the Mpls. Institute of Arts, are a few  of the numerous programs and events that the Sogetsu group participates in each year.  

We send JASM our best wishes for another 50 years of partnership with Sogetsu Ikebana and the beauty of flowers.  Congratulations!

Front row, from left：Front row, from left

Noriko Ishida,

Barbara Kennedy 

Yoshie Babcock,

Joyce Beauchane, Hiroko Shade,

Back row, from left

Sachiyo Nishi, Yoko Toda, Kim Gordon,

Keiko Kawakami, Yasuko MacNahb,

Keiko Martin

Don Katagiri

I became an individual member of JASM around 1975 and brought Jim Hoffman, a future JASM president, to the JASM board. My wife, Patricia was a secretary of JASM while Doctor Nishida was a president and received the Mondale Award in 2019.

Biggest event of my involvement with JASM was America Japan Week, May 28 - June 4, 1994 when Arne Carlson was the Governor of Minnesota and Mirja Hansen was the president of JASM. Events over the course of the week were held at various venues, including the Minneapolis Convention Center, Target Center, Nicollet Mall, U of M, and Hilton Hotel. At the events there were a total of 86 groups: 2,580 people came from Japan; business associations, culture/music groups, martial artists, sumo wrestlers, sister-cities affiliates, etc. The Minnesota participants were CVBs, schools from WI, IA, MN, churches, Boy Scouts, citizens groups, business chambers, JETRO, JNTO. In all there were over 100,000 people there!

Deborah Huskins, Daughter of Shirley Huskins
The Japan America Society of Minnesota has meant a great deal to me and our family over the years.  After having attended a number of JASM events over the years with my mother, I now have become a member and enjoyed my first volunteering event at the recent Obon Festival.  It was a lot of fun, and people were so welcoming!

Our family’s connection to Japan runs deep.  My parents, Shirley and Bill Huskins, were founding members of JASM.  Their connection to Japan started when I was 2 ½, when we moved to Tokyo; Dad worked for Northwest Orient Airlines.  Mom quickly became engaged in studying Japanese, Sumi-e, Ikebana, and many other activities.  We moved back to Minnesota in 1967, and both Mom and Dad wanted to do what they could to strengthen community and  corporate and personal ties between our two countries. They helped found JASM in 1972.  Through the years, Mom volunteered for the Festival of Nations and other events and was Secretary of the Board for a time.  I attended the Mondale award events with her several times; one very memorable occasion was when Mom’s good friend, Kimi Hara, received the Mondale award.  Mom’s granddaughter, my daughter Alyssa, also attended that event.  Soon after, Alyssa traveled to Tokyo where she was an exchange student for a year and attended Japanese high school.  Alyssa loved Japan so much she moved there after college in 2009 to teach English to schoolchildren.  She quickly became fluent in Japanese and now lives in Osaka with her husband and two daughters. My niece, a senior in college, has also been studying Japanese for 4 years. 

The most memorable event for me was the evening when Mom was presented with the 2009 Mondale Award for Japan-America Partnership.  Mom was so honored! Our whole family was there to celebrate.

I hope that JASM continues to thrive and build even stronger connections between the people and organizations of Japan and Minnesota.  I look forward to continued participation in JASM activities in the future.

Noriko Ishida, Tetsunori Ishida and Mio Ishida

In the absence of Takuzo Ishida, who passed away in 2019, his family stood for a portrait in what was his bonsai workshop attached to the house. As a former JASM president and founder of the Minneapolis Japanese School, he left a mark on the community, and we honor his memory with the Takuzo Ishida

Memorial Scholarship for high school students through JASM. We are delighted that the newest recipient, Walter Barlow from Apple Valley High School, will have the opportunity to study in Japan with the help of the funds that were raised by the generous donations from friends. Aki Ishida, who was unable to fly into town for the portrait was part of the scholarship selection committee. The Ishida family will continue Takuzo’s legacy with a seat on the board of directors and participation and support of JASM mission and activities.

J-Quiz Committee as of 2022

The original J-Quiz was a competition developed by the Japan America Society of Minnesota to test the ability of high school students who were studying Japanese language from 2003 to 2022. It was modeled on a quiz show format and aims to make the study of Japan and Japanese challenging and enjoyable. Teams of students were asked questions regarding Japanese language — including grammar, vocabulary, kanji and kana, and culture — with the top teams advancing to a final competition in front of their peers. The first-place team in levels 2, 3, and 4 were sent on a trip to Washington D.C. and given an opportunity to compete in the National Japan Bowl.

In 2023 JASM widened the target group of participants. J-Quiz is now an online trivia event for anyone who is learning Japanese, to test their level of knowledge of Japanese language and culture and to meet like-minded people.

From left

Keiko Kawakami

Naomi Satoh

Hiroko Shade, Co-Chair

Kyoko French

Michiko Kato Dressen, Co-Chair (not pictured)

Lydia Rose, Mondale Scholar 2020-2021, JASM Board Member 2022-Current

I was first introduced to JASM in my first Japanese class at the University of Minnesota my sophomore year. My sensei began class by telling us about the Mondale scholarship as well as JASM’s internship opportunities. I remember sitting in that classroom, hearing about JASM and thinking that I had to be a part of it. As a Technical Writing and Communications major with a Japanese minor there were few opportunities for me to utilize both of these fields of study at once and I saw that a JASM internship would give me that opportunity. 

Fast-forward three years and I have been fortunate enough to have been JASM’s Media Relations Coordinator, a recipient of the Mondale scholarship, and am now a member of JASM’s board. 

However, it may be surprising to some that I have never been to Japan. When I received the Mondale scholarship in 2020, I was hoping I would be able to study abroad my senior year. However, due to COVID restrictions, I was allowed to use the scholarship toward an online, Japanese-language program through CET Japan. Since I have not been able to go to Japan myself, JASM has been my way to experience small pieces of Japan here in Minnesota.

Since I first joined JASM in 2019 I have been privileged enough to attend many of JASM’s events from the Mondale Gala, to the Obon festival, to corporate roundtables and more. Through each event I have learned about the complexities of intercultural communication and international relations; the beauty of cultural differences; and the nuances of Japanese language, culture, history, and tradition that I would never have learned otherwise.

Going forward, I want to encourage students like me, who are looking for ways to learn more about Japan and the Japanese community, in Minnesota and Japan itself. I want to see more people making it a yearly tradition to come to the Obon festival and for students and business professionals to attend and learn from corporate roundtables. I have experienced first-hand the impact JASM’s programs and events can have and I know that as a member of JASM’s board I will continue to do so and encourage others to do the same.