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| Left: J-pop sensation Kat-Tun to appear at Grand Parade. Right: Sumo Wrestler Iwakiyama to appear at Grand Parade. | |
For more information:
Diane Tanaka
For immediate release
310-962-2698
65TH ANNUAL NISEI WEEK JAPANESE FESTIVAL GRAND MARSHAL AND PARADE MARSHAL NAMED
(Los Angeles - July 24, 2005) - The 65th Annual Nisei Week Japanese Festival's Grand Parade will be held in Little Tokyo on Sunday, August 14 starting at 4 p.m. The parade route starts at Central Avenue traveling west on 2nd Street, north up Los Angeles Street, then east on 1st Street and finishes at Central Avenue. Parade participants will include the newly crowned 2005 Nisei Week Queen and court, many local community groups, high schools, elected officials and representatives from Nagoya, Los Angeles' sister city, as well as queen and court members from Hawaii, San Francisco and Seattle communities. This year's Grand Marshall is Frances Hashimoto, owner of Mikawaya and long time supporter of Nisei Week and the Little Tokyo community. Colonel Young Oak Kim (Ret.), chairman emeritus of the Go For Broke Educational Foundation was named Honorary Grand Marshal. The 2005 Parade Marshal is David Ono, anchor of KABC-TV's 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. news; and Honorary Parade Marshal is Mike Shinoda, guitarist of rock band Linkin Park.
"It is important that we honor those pillars in our community who have really gone above and beyond to ensure Little Tokyo is around for generations to come, yet also recognize those who represent diverse segments of the community," said Hayato Tamura, president of the Nisei Week Foundation. "We are extremely pleased to recognize France Hashimoto, Col. Young O. Kim, David Ono and Mike Shinoda. They truly represent our rich and diverse community and we are honored they are a part of this year's Nisei Week Festival. We encourage everyone to come out to the parade as well as other fun, family oriented events."
Frances Kazuko Hashimoto is the Grand Marshal of the 65th Annual Nisei Week Grand Parade. As the president and owner of her family's business, Mikawaya Confectionary, Frances Hashimoto has taken mochi, or Japanese sweet rice cakes, to a new level of national recognition as the originator of mochi ice cream. Hashimoto and her husband, Joel Friedman, have expanded Mikawaya to five retail locations, four in California and one in Hawaii. In addition to managing Mikawaya, Hashimoto is an integral and active member of the Japanese American community, especially Little Tokyo. She was the general chair of the Nisei Week Japanese Festival in 1982 and 1990 and currently serves on the executive committee of the Nisei Week Foundation. Hashimoto has been involved in numerous community organizations, including Little Tokyo Business Association president since 1994; Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Southern California director; Japanese American Community & Cultural Center director; and Little Tokyo Community Council executive committee. Additionally, Hashimoto is actively involved with local government task forces, including the Mayor's Little Tokyo Community Development Advisory Committee, Private Industry Council of the City of Los Angeles, and the Community Review Advisory Committee Metro Gold Line Eastern Extension.
This year's Honorary Grand Marshal is Col. Young Oak Kim. After graduating as 2nd Lieutenant from Infantry Officer Candidate School in January 1943, he joined the 100th Battalion, which with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team became the most decorated unit in U.S. military history for its size and length of service. He participated in battles in Italy and France during World War II and received numerous decorations, including the Distinguished Service Cross and Silver Star. Col. Kim is credited as being the first Asian American to command a regular U.S. combat battalion in a war when he commanded the 1st Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th U.S. Army Division during the Korean War. After 30 years, Col. Kim retired from the U.S. Army in 1972. He then focused on the Asian American community, helping to found the Go For Broke Educational Foundation, Japanese American National Museum, Korean Health Education Information and Research Center, Korean American Coalition, Korean American Museum, Korean Youth and Culture Center, and the Center for Pacific Asian Families.
2005 Parade Marshal is award winning broadcast journalist, David Ono mans the anchor desk twice a day on KABC-TV from 11 a.m. - 12 p.m., and 5 to 6 p.m. Ono first joined the "Eyewitness News" team in 1996 and previously hosted "Eye on LA." and co-anchored "Eyewitness News This Morning." Ono has won eight Emmy awards and 19 nominations and his reports have included training extensively with special FBI agents, showing Southern California viewers what it takes to be an FBI agent. Similarly, he's trained with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's elite Special Enforcement Bureau, one of the world's toughest SWAT teams, which allowed viewers to see its grueling demands. Ono grew up in Texas and is a graduate of the University of North Texas. In addition to his extremely busy schedule, Ono finds time to give back to the community. He has volunteered his time with Nisei Week, Japanese American Optimists, and the Go For Broke Educational Foundation will maintaining his training as a professional triathlete.
To introduce a new audience to Nisei Week, Mike Shinoda was named Honorary Parade Marshal. Shinoda attended the Art Center College of Design, and found that juggling art and music was exhausting. He attended band practice after school every night, but his diligence paid off. More than 35 million albums later, Shinoda is known as rapper, part-time guitarist, and beat-maker for Grammy award-winning rock band Linkin Park. Shinoda is very philanthropic, and in the last five years he started a scholarship at his alma mater, and been involved with the United Way, AIDS Project Los Angeles, Densho, Japanese American National Museum, Arthritis Foundation, and Make-A-Wish Foundation. Last year Linkin Park started Music For Relief to aid the rebuilding of South East Asia, raising more than $2 million for relief efforts.
The 2005 Nisei Week Japanese Festival takes place in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo District from August 13-21. For calendar of events and volunteer information on the 65th Nisei Week Festival, please log onto www.NiseiWeek.org or call the Nisei Week Festival office at 213/687-7193 or fax at 213/687-6510. The Nisei Week office is located at 244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 303, Los Angeles, Calif., 90012.
2005 Honorees and Pioneers [view]
Calendar Listing [view]
Volunteer Information [view]