JETAA HAWAII

On October 13 at the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu, Consul General Kamo welcomed JET returners, JET alumni, people involved in JET selection process and members of various local Japanese organizations at his residence for the annual JET Welcome Back Reception.  Four of the JET returners gave presentations on their individual experiences full of anecdotes and stories, most of which other JET alumni could relate to.  It was great to be reminded of the JET Program’s goals (and achievements) of grassroots international exchange by seeing real examples in those four presentations.

On the following evening, October 14, JETAA Hawaii members and friends gathered at Nocturna Lounge for JETAA Hawaii’s annual Returner’s Mixer.  Whether they were singing karaoke, playing Guitar Hero, dancing away on the XBox Kinect, or just chatting with each other, attendees all had a great time.  I personally enjoyed meeting all of the new returners and look forward to seeing you all at future events!  Thank you to everyone who attended!

Again, welcome back JET returners and if there is anything we can do to assist you, please do not hesitate to contact us at JETAA Hawaii!

Next up in our list of events:
+ Volunteer at IHS:  Please join us on November 19th Saturday from 7-8AM to help serve breakfast at the IHS (Institute for Human Services) men’s shelter near K-mart!  Take some time out of your Saturday morning to volunteer with us!  Please see our Pingg invite for more information and to RSVP.

+ November Happy Hour: November 8, Tuesday, 5-7PM, Taco Tuesdays at Dave and Busters at Ward Center.

If you have not been receiving our monthly e-mails and would like to be added to our list, please contact us at jetaahawaii [at] gmail [dot] com.

Check out this article on JETwit.com!

Secretary of State Clinton speech lauds JET Program and JET Alumni, talks about Monty Dickson and Taylor Anderson

Oops!  It seems that we completely missed writing an article for August, so forgive us!

August:

August’s main event was bon dancing at the Jodo Mission of Hawaii.  Members and friends dusted off their jinbei and yukata (and geta!) and enjoyed the food, music, and dancing at the bon dance!

If you know of any local Japanese culture-related events that you would like to share with us, feel free to e-mail us and let us know!

September:

As our unofficial welcome event for the recent JET returnees, we hold this casual event every year.  This year, we enjoyed a large participation from 17 members and friends at Aiea Bowl.  Whether it was the competition, the conversation, the food, the beer, or the thrill of bowling for the first time, everyone had a great time!

At the end of the night, we awarded three prizes based on different merit: the highest score, the lowest score, and the team with the highest score.  JET alumni and recent returnee Dawn brought two of her nieces, one of whom which won the prize for the lowest score.  Upon being given the first chance to choose from two different gift cards and the mystery prize, Tatiana wisely chose the mystery prize: a white JETAA Hawaii t-shirt and (yes, you’ve guessed it) a fresh avocado!  JET alumni Jon Trace took the highest score of the night with a score of 170.  JET alumni Laurie Shimabukuro’s team had the highest score of the night and she beat the rest of her team at jan-ken-po and received a prize.

Thank you everyone for coming out to our events!  We truly appreciate your participation and are doing our best to provide you with great events.  We look forward to seeing you at future happy hours and events!

In November through January, we’re looking at organizing a series of volunteer events for those of you who are looking to contribute to your community, so be on the lookout for more information!

*Please e-mail us at jetaahawaii [at] gmail [dot] com if you would like to be added to our e-mail list or have not been receiving our e-mails.

Apologies for the delay in updating you all on our July activity!  July was another busy month with the Experience Enkai, JETAA USA National Conference, and the New JET Participant Pre-Departure Reception.

**It seems that some people have not been receiving our e-mails sent out to the membership.  Typically, we send out an e-mail at the beginning of the month to notify everyone of our upcoming and past events, as well as reminders prior to events, so if you have not been receiving those, please e-mail us at our jetaahawaii [at] gmail account.**

Annual JETAA Hawaii Experience Enkai
July 8, 2011, Friday | Natsunoya Tea House
Another part of our series of events put on to prepare the newly-selected JET participants, the Experience Enkai is the big farewell where the JET alumni have one last chance to impart wisdom (or reminisce about crazy stories in Japan) with the new JETs before they leave.  The event annually takes place at Natsunoya Tea House in one of the Japanese-style dining rooms and sets the perfect atmosphere for the main theme of the event – enkai etiquette!

JET alumni taught the new JETs everything they will need to know during an enkai from how to properly pour and receive beer to their jikoshoukai (self-introduction).  As alumni, this is one of our favorite events where we enjoy having the chance to talk with the new JETs in a friendly atmosphere over food and drinks, encouraging them and giving them advice prior to their departure.

Following the etiquette courses, the delicious (and plentiful!) meal, and jikoshoukais, we finished the night with a string of games.  One of the games that we played called Jan-ken Train, may even come in handy for the JETs who end up teaching at elementary schools!

We would like to thank Natsunoya Tea House for the great service and for hosting us every year.  Another big thank you goes out to the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau for donating a plethora of items that the new JETs will be able to use as gifts and prizes during their life in Japan.  Lastly, thank you to all of the JET alumni who came out and supported JETAA Hawaii in preparing the new JETs!

Click on the header above to check out photos from the event!

2011 JETAA USA National Conference
July 14-17, 2011 | Washington D.C.
Every year, all of the main JETAA chapters in the US gather for the JETAA USA National Conference which is hosted by a different JETAA chapter each time.  This year, the conference was organized and hosted by the Washington D.C. chapter.  With the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami this past Spring, many of the topics covered this year were centered around how JETs in Japan, JET alumni, and JET alumni chapters have been helping to support the various relief organizations, as well as how we can continue to help out.

It was very encouraging and interesting to meet officers from other JETAA chapters and learn about their chapters and events.  As I mentioned in my July e-mail, we have a lot of great ideas that we took back from the conference that we hope to bring to JETAA Hawaii.  For a full run-through of what was covered at this year’s conference, please see this link.

Although we did not have the chance to take many photos, we did get one photo with fellow JET alumni Anthony Bianchi who is the first American-born city official elected in Japan.  He currently serves as a City Council member in Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture.  For a video clip introducing Anthony Bianchi, see this link.

New JET Pre-Departure Orientation and Reception
July 29, 2011, Friday | Consulate General of Honolulu
I had the opportunity to attend the New JET Pre-Departure Reception, the last official event for the new JETs that takes place the day before they depart for Japan.  During the orientation portion, I was given the chance to impart some last words of wisdom to the new JETs and I’m hoping some of them remember a little of what I said.  Seeing the new JETs being briefed on where to meet at the airport the next morning, on what will happen when they arrive in Tokyo, and seeing their returned passports, now with visas, brought back fond memories!

As we say farewell to this year’s newly selected JETs, we challenge you all to do your best in Japan in representing Hawaii and the rest of our country!  …And now that the new JETs are gone, we look forward to welcoming back all of our returning JETs from Japan!

This Friday night from 7:30PM, join us at the Jodo Mission of Hawaii’s bon dance!  If you would like to attend, please RSVP at this link.  Also, please join us for our monthly happy hours that take place on the 2nd Tuesday of each month – details for the location are announced in our monthly e-mails.

Thank you everyone for your support and we hope to see you at our events!

Every June after the new JET Program participants have been selected, JETAA Hawaii gets quite busy! Here’s the scoop of what went down this past month:

New JET Pre-Departure Orientation
June 18, 2011, Saturday | Tokai University
Every year, the Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu organizes an orientation for the newly-selected JET Program participants to brief them on everything from packing to teaching English. This event serves as their first real introduction to the job they have accepted. JETAA Hawaii assists every year with various teaching-oriented activities and a Q & A forum at the end.

One of the activities that the new JETs particularly enjoyed was the JTE-ALT (Japanese Teacher of English – Assistant Language Teacher) Team Teaching simulation organized by JETAA Hawaii Co-events Coordinator Kai Kaapana and recent-returnee Phillip Tsang. Serving as the “native speaker,” Phillip Tsang spoke in only Cantonese while Kai Kaapana translated in English. This activity threw the new JETs into a whirl of confusion, but at the same time giving them a glimpse of what their students will experience. In addition, the activity showed them the potential for how fun their lessons can be!

New JET Mixer
June 24, 2011, Friday | Pearl Ultralounge
Another part of JETAA Hawaii’s combo of annual events put on for the new JET Program participants, the New JET Mixer is planned specifically with the purpose of giving the new JETs an extra opportunity to bond with each other, as well as ask additional questions they might have with alumni. For JET alumni, this event also serves to fulfill our selfish desire to impart our wisdom upon the new JETs before they depart.

At the end of the Friday workday, we all gathered at Pearl Ultralounge to enjoy good company and good food! We were also joined by two Japanese teachers of English, one from Osaka and one from Okinawa, who happened to be in Oahu for a conference.

Monthly Happy Hour
June 28, 2011, Tuesday | Dave and Busters
We continued our monthly happy hour in June with Taco Tuesday at Dave and Busters. With $1 tacos and $3 beers, this was the perfect way to end the work day. There isn’t much to say except that everyone had a great time relaxing and talking story over delicious and cheap tacos. Join us for the next happy hour at Bar 35!

A big thanks to everyone participating in the events, especially the JET alumni who have attended the new JET events.  Also, a big thank you to JET alumni Phillip Tsang for organizing the great team teaching demonstration with Kai Kaapana.

We’re looking forward to seeing you at our next events!  We have some great activities lined up for the fall, so please join us!  For more pictures, see our flickr page at flickr.com/jetaahawaii or click on the headers from the event descriptions above.

On Wednesday, May 25th, JETAA Hawaii gathered at Mai Tai Bar at Ala Moana for Happy Hour with Global Village Hawaii.  Students from Global Village Hawaii had the chance to practice their English with JETAA members and friends and members alike got to catch up with each other.  We were surprised to hear that some of the students live as far as Hawaii Kai (and some even further!) and commute to school every day by bus.  It just goes to show how much we (or myself, at least) rely on automobiles to get around here in Hawaii.  Everyone had a great time and we look forward to more monthly happy hours.

Thank you everyone who joined us!  We hope to see you again at our next happy hour and other events!

Once again, JETAA Hawaii volunteered at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii’s annual Kodomo no Hi Keiki Funfest event.  This Children’s Day event offers a wide variety of activities and games for children of all ages, featuring everything Japanese from Taiko performances to Hanafuda lessons.

JETAA Hawaii hosted its usual table making paper daruma, helping children exercise their creativity through arts and crafts.  As the event fell on May 1st, JETAA Hawaii also included paper lei making.  Children learned about the tradition of daruma and setting goals while having fun with gluesticks and construction paper!

We would like to thank the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii for having us each year and of course, all of our hardworking volunteers who came out.  We’re looking forward to the next event we can help out with!

For pictures from the event, check out our Flickr page.

In celebration of Earth Day (April 22), JETAA Hawaii teamed up with Global Village Hawaii this past Saturday for a preemptive strike to do some cleaning at Kakaako Park.  Equipped with gloves and trash bags, members mixed together and scoured the South end of the park.  Despite the worries that “Kakaako Park is already too clean,” everyone was able to happily fill many bags of trash.

Following the cleanup, everyone gathered under the pavilion to feast!  Hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled vegetables, shrimp, Cinnabons, fruits, guava rolls, and Pretz were just some of the delicious items provided by everyone.

JETAA Hawaii would like to thank Global Village Hawaii Activities Coordinator Jerry Lee and all of the students from Global Village Hawaii for coming out!  We look forward to future events with you all.  Also, a big shout-out and thanks to those who donated socks!

Check out our Flickr album for pictures!

Next up: Kodomo no Hi Keiki Fun Fest at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii!

As many of us know, April marks the beginning of the academic school year in Japan. Here at JETAA Hawaii, it also marks the beginning and end of Executive Board terms. In order for outgoing officers to provide a smooth transition for their replacements, as well as celebrate and congratulate the outgoing officers’ hard work, we hold Officer Night annually.

This year, Officer Night took place at Gazen Izayaka in Kaimuki on March 28th where members from both the 2010 and 2011 Executive Boards gathered. We started off the night with our monthly meeting, followed by individual meetings between officers, the whole time while enjoying some great food and company. Thank you Kelsey, Krystle, Dori, and Reid for your hard work! We wish you the best of luck with your future endeavors and look forward to your continued participation with JETAA Hawaii! Also, a big thanks to the staff at Gazen Izakaya for their great service and great food, especially the array of tofu dishes!

The 2011 Executive Board has some great events and ideas planned for the coming year, so get ready!

As of March 31, 2011, JETAA Hawaii has collected $3,201.00 in donations going to the Japan-America Society of Hawaii with 100% of funds intended for the Japanese Red Cross Society and Sendai Ikuei Gakuen. Thank you to all our donors! Some of our members and alumni have also given to the JETAA USA fund as well, and we thank you! Despite the tragic events occurring in Japan, it warms our heart to know that we are all trying to do our part to assist in the relief effort.

Thank you for your support and contribution!

JETAA Hawaii President Kelsey Soma Turek presents donations in support of Japan Earthquake Relief to JASH President Ed Hawkins