By Bill Tashima
NAP Contributor
Past Presidents and Scholarship Awardees in front of the NVC Memorial Wall. First Row: Rei Ichikawa, Toshiko Mealy, Minara Sugano, and Janice Deguchi (1998). Standing: Kyle Kinoshita (2022-2024), Michael Kenji Tanaka, Nathan Terada, Tsuki Nomura-Henley (2025-2026), Sheldon Arakaki past Lake Washington chapter president), Joy St, Germain (1992), David Okimoto (1988), Stan Shikuma (2020-2023), and Sarah Baker (2016-2019). Missing-David Yamaguchi (1999) Photo credit: David Yamaguchi.
The Seattle Chapter Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) salutes the 2026 scholarship awardees. This year, an exceptional group of students were acknowledged for their accomplishments:
Rei Ichikawa – Dr. Susumu Shimokon/ Iseri Family Scholarship
Toshiko Mealy – Minoru Tamesa Scholarship
Annika Shinoda – Cherry and Mas Kinoshita Scholarship
Minara Sugano – Bunshiro Tazuma Scholarship
Michael Kenji Tanaka – Elaine Reiko Akagi Scholarship
Nathan Terada – Aki Kurose Scholarship
The annual bento luncheon was held on May 9 at the Nisei Veterans Committee clubhouse in Seattle, Washington. It included a tour of the legacy-rich facility. Each year, past chapter presidents are invited to celebrate the visionaries for whom the scholarships are endowed.
Thank you to this year’s committee: Mika Kurose-Rothman (chair), Patsy Burgess, BiHoa Caldwell, Karen Cunningham, Katie Cunningham, Rae Hanashiro, Kyle Kinoshita, Paul Kurose, Teresa Maebori, Kara Mealy, Tsuki Nomura-Henley, Jo Shapiro, Kioko Soneda, and Bill Tashima, a special thank you to past Seattle JACL president, David Yamaguchi, for stepping up to be the event photographer.
