The Hilo-based Japanese Community Association of Hawaii is sponsoring its Japanese Culture Day, or Bunka No Hi, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. this Saturday at the Sangha Hall.
This year’s event is themed “Genki.” Admission is free.
“We are so pleased that the community can once again enjoy Japanese Culture Day, as our last in-person event was in 2019,” said Lincoln Ashida, president of the JCAH.
The festivities kick off with a short Omikoshi parade starting at the Aupuni Center on Kilauea Avenue and ending at Sangha Hall at 9:30 a.m.
The mikoshi is a portable shrine which is carried during many festivals in Japan. Veteran Isamu Kanekuni, 101, who served in the famed 442nd Combat Team, will be the grand marshal.
We’re so happy to be back doing our in-person events starting with Bunka No Hi,” said Laurie Higashi, public relations chair. “We aren’t changing much, but are so excited to promote the Japanese culture and share with the community.”
The Bunka No Hi program includes honoring Japanese Community Association of Hawaii members who are 90 years and older.
The featured entertainer is Dazzman “Dazz” Toguchi, a fourth-generation Okinawan-American and master of Ryukyu Buyo (Okinawan dance) and Nihon Shinbuyo (Japanese dance) who has graced the stages around the world, including the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Carnegie Hall in New York.
Puna Taiko will be performing Shishimai, a traditional Japanese lion dance.
The program also includes performances by Taishoji Taiko and Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko, and demonstrations by Hilo Hongwanji Judo, Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido and Zen Archery by Russell Ogata, formerly of Pahala.
Pa‘auilo native Pieper Toyama, author of “Family Stories from the Plantation and Beyond” will be telling stories and signing books.
Other displays and demos include shibori with Kim Springer, tea ceremony, washi chigiri-e, bonsai and ikebana. Experienced calligraphers will be on hand to write your name or message for a fee.
KTA Super Stores and Big Island Docs are providing an on-site vaccination clinic from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. inside Sangha Hall.
Food concessions and a limited number of event T-shirts will be available for sale.
JCAH celebrates Bunka No Hi every other year. Next year, the association will be planning an in-person Kodomo No Matsuri, or Children’s Day Festival, in Hilo for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Japanese Community Association of Hawaii is a nonprofit organization with a membership of nearly 400 families. The JCAH was formed 51 years ago to promote and perpetuate the Japanese culture and arts in East Hawaii and to foster international relationships with Japanese citizens and organizations. For more information or to join, visit www.jcah.org.