Tomo was enrolled into his first Japanese language class at the Vancouver Japanese Language School in 1980. Since that time, he has been involved with the VJLS-JH as a student, a student council member, a graduate (alumnus), a volunteer, and a board director.
With a background in management and education, Tomo strives to continue the legacy and the role of the VJLS-JH for the Japanese Canadian community and its greater community.
Yuko is a nisei (2nd generation) Japanese-Canadian and went to Japanese Language School (Calgary) as a child. Yuko is also a Professional Engineer with over 15 years of experience and has an Executive MBA from the Beedie School of Business.
Yuko is closely involved in the local Japanese community, including being a Judo Yudansha (black belt) and coach at the Ishikawa Family Judo Club in Burnaby and her two children attending Japanese school (Coquitlam).
Miyuki is a professional accountant and serves as the Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair at VJLS-JH. She has been providing her expertise in accounting and tax compliance to the Board and supporting VJLS-JH for several years.
Her son attended Kodomo-no-Kuni and VJLS for 15 years, graduating from high school in 2014. During her volunteer work in the kitchen, she learned how to make Manju. She has volunteered at fundraising events such as bazaars and the Powell Street Festival with her son for many years.
She is interested in learning about the history of Japanese Canadians and wants to continue to make a positive impact on the future direction of VJLS-JH.
Paula is an artist, mother of two grown children and a business person. Part of Paula’s practise is the Japanese art of Gyotaku. She has traveled internationally exhibiting this work and leading workshops. As far as she knows, she is the only woman of Japanese heritage teaching this art form in North America.
She has enjoyed learning more about the language, customs, the arts, sports and food while being at the School more frequently in the last year.
Her Japanese father’s family owned a convenience store before the war, just a couple blocks from the Japanese Hall. Maybe he ran down the street to watch the Asahi baseball games.
She sees so much care, life and attention alive at the Hall and is glad to be part of its growth and success.
Russ’ daughter is a graduate of VJLS who started with Children’s World (kodomono-kuni).
Over the past 20 years living in Vancouver, Russ’ main interests have been in woodworking and retail. He was the owner of a Japanese Antique shop called Kikori (wood cutter). Before this he lived in Toronto where he had a business making Shoji screens and Japanese furniture. Throughout his life, Russ has been a martial arts enthusiast, practicing Judo in his youth, Karate in high school and continuing with Kendo as an adult . In the early 1980s, he traveled to Japan on an artisan visa and was lucky enough to have a sponsor and to learn Japanese woodworking.
His involvement with the Japanese community in Vancouver has come in the form of contract work for many restaurants, National Nikkei Heritage Center, UBC Nitobe Gardens, Tozenji Buddhist Temple and many other entities. At VLJS-JH, Russ has built cabinetry that is in daily use by many students. Russ helps the organization extensively with facilities and building maintenance. He hopes to continue to contribute at VJLS-JH with his interest in Japanese history and as a long-standing member of the organization.
Lisa is a nisei Japanese-Canadian and a graduate of the Calgary Japanese Language School. What brought her to Vancouver was a dream job with the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Now, she proudly calls Vancouver the home where her daughter attended the daycare program at Children’s World and is now a student at VJLS.
What she loves about VJLS-JH is its openness to be an inclusive community for anyone interested in the Japanese language and culture. She says, “I’m not Japanese enough sometimes, too Canadian at other times, and occasionally, people are convinced I’m born and raised in Japan! VJLS welcomes all versions of me, and I am passionate about offering this sense of belonging to everyone who walks through those doors at the School.”
She brings over a decade of communications, marketing & media experience to the Board, which she hopes will support fundraising efforts. She loves cooking and has found extreme joy in the VJLS-JH kitchen on Saturdays.
Igor grew up in Moscow, Russia and received both MS and PhD in Applied Mathematics from Moscow State University. He and his wife moved from Moscow to Vancouver in 2006. Their decision was based on the google search results for the “Best place on Earth”, promptly returning Vancouver. Just a couple of months later, their daughter was born. It’s her passion for Japanese calligraphy (shodo), language studies and culture that brought his family to VJLS.
Throughout his professional career he has been working in research and development field as a software engineer, applied mathematician and researcher for over 25 years. He also has several years of teaching experience, both at the undergraduate and high school levels, and passionate about education in general, especially about helping young people find their future career and a meaningful goal in life.
Mariko came to Canada in 2005 after graduating from university in Japan where she studied International Communications. She went to Senegal to study developing country’s society as a field trip, gaining communication skills with international people during her school year. After finishing her working holiday visa in 2006, she decided to go to the university again and study Psychology as she was always interested in human mind and brain.
She graduated from the University of Victoria in 2011, came to Vancouver and started her family after working in the service industry. Now she is a mother of two daughters, raising them with lots of Japanese culture and food involved. She is proud of being Japanese in many ways, and thinks it is very important to inherit the Japanese culture to her children since they were born in Canada.
She also works as a financial advisor to help and educate families with their finances. She hopes her connections and knowledge could also be good assets for this community in the future.