Toji Hashimoto, president of the San Fernando Valley Japanese-American Community Center in Pacoima, remembers when things weredifferent in California and the Valley.
Born in Manzanar, the internment camp in the Owens Valley used tohold Japanese-Americans and Japanese nationals during World War II,Hashimoto, 62, said that after the war ended, many Japanese-Americans went into the nursery or landscaping businesses.
'That was the only work they would allow you to do,' Hashimotosaid. 'You couldn't work for the government because they stilldidn't trust you.'
It was in that environment the SFVJACC was founded in 1951 as aplace where Japanese-Americans could find support and friendship andwhere Japanese and American culture and institutions could becelebrated.
Today the large facility is run without any government subsidiesand sustains itself from membership dues, donations and the help ofa large core of volunteers. In addition, the Los Angeles UnifiedSchool District leases land from the SFVJACC for the Bert CoronaCharter Middle School that operates on the center's property.
The center has about 800 families and individuals as members andoffers many programs such as organized athletics for children,Japanese cooking classes, ballroom dancing and Hawaiian ukulelelessons.
Hashimoto, a retired nursery operator who first came to theValley with his family in 1957, said as attitudes and career goalshave changed for Japanese-Americans over the years, so must thecommunity center.
'We have to try to get the 30-and-up group involved in thecenter,' Hashimoto said. 'The first step is to try and draw them in,get their attention and see what their concerns are with the center,and see what our concerns are, and see what we can come up with.'
The center has thrived with the support of the postwarmembership, a group growing in age. For members, Hashimoto said thecenter is an important part of their lives. Each Tuesday and Friday,the center offers lunch to members for $2 to $3. Live musiciansoften accompany the meals.
'They don't come because it's cheap,' Hashimoto said. 'They cometo see their old friends and socialize. Everybody knows each otherand they have a good time.'
A lot of work goes into ensuring that the members enjoy theirmeal. Sachi and Geoff Arai of Porter Ranch head the food crew.Married 51 years, the Arais have been involved with the center since1999.
'Once we retired, we said, We only know three Japanese familiesin the Valley,' Sachi Arai said.
A month in advance, a group of volunteers creates the menu andSachi Arai makes up a shopping list and a host of volunteers goshopping, each for specific items. The crew serves about 225 to 275people a week, so the food requirements can be quite large. GeoffArai said because the center is a nonprofit organization, it oftenreceives generous portions of fresh seafood from corporations thatgo out on sport-fishing exertions.
'At the end of this month, we're getting a big load of tuna(3,000 to 4,000 pounds), from San Diego,' he said. 'We'll be servingraw fish and cooked fish for March.
'(The) older folks like the sashimi.'
With a large contingent of people from Hawaii, members also enjoyHawaiian music.
Volunteer ukulele instructor Greg Librando guarantees hisbeginning students that they'll learn to play in just six weeks. Ata recent class, the Pacoima resident played the ukulele along withhis students while his wife, Maebelle, sang:
Going to Hana, Maui
Drive that trail,
the beauty never ends ...
Maebelle Librando absolutely loves the center. She can't imaginewhat life would be like without it.
'If they were to close the center, there would be so many peoplewho would be so lost because they wouldn't know what to do,'Librando said. 'There is something to do every day.
'We're so fortunate to have it with us.'
For information on the San Fernando Valley Japanese-AmericanCommunity Center, call (818) 899-1989.
