JAKWV Plans Activities for Nisei Week

Members of Japanese American Korean War Veterans marching in last year’s Nisei Week Parade. (Photo by Bacon Sakatani)

President Tohoru Isobe announced that he has appointed Wally Takata and Sam Shimoguchi as co-chairmen for the 2015 Japanese American Korean War Veterans (JAKWV) Nisei Week activities, and both have promised a great time for veterans and their families on Saturday, Aug. 15, and Sunday, Aug. 16.

As always, the Veterans’ Hospitality Room will be located at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, 244 S. San Pedro St. in Little Tokyo, on the second floor and is open to any veteran, widows of veterans, and any family member of a veteran, no matter where or when the veteran served. It will be a place for relaxation and renewal of friendships and comradeship for veterans and their families. This also includes any current members of the armed services and their families.

At the Hospitality Room, there will be food and drinks, with tables and chairs on the balcony providing a view of the activities on the plaza stage and the concessionaires.

The Information Booth will be next to the Japanese American  National War Memorial Court, with newsletters, brochures, and books as well as free flowers, which will be given to those who wish to pay their respects to the men who gave their lives in all of America’s wars.

Korean War Medal of Honor recipient and JAKWV member Hershey Miyamura from Gallup, N.M., will lead the veterans in the 2015 Nisei Week Parade on Sunday at 5 p.m. Any veteran of the Korean War era is asked to participate.

“Every year we are losing members and we need every Korean War veteran to join our group in marching or riding in the parade,” JAKWV said in a statement. “The uniform of the day is your service caps, if you have one, and even if you don’t, we ask you join us anyway.”

The schedule for the weekend is as follows:

Saturday — Hospitality Room and Information Booth open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Sunday— Hospitality Room and Information Booth are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All who are marching in the parade will meet at the staging area at 4:30 p.m.

For further information, contact Wally Takata at (323) 722-2302 or wall-taka@yahoo.com; or Sam Shimoguchi at (310) 822-6688 or samkuni@verizon.net.