JAPANESE CULTURAL CENTER OF HAWAI‘I STAFF

This close-knit team of 10 may have varied interests, but they do share one commonality: their combined efforts to see the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i continue to grow and mature as an institution that preserves and educates about the Japanese American experience in Hawai’i—the only place in the world with broad, relevant expertise on this unique issue.

Lenny Yajima Andrew
President/Executive Director

Appointed the helm of the JCCH in 2007, Lenny Yajima Andrew has her sights on broadening the scope of our partnerships with other community organizations, increasing membership and programming on the neighbor islands and creating a self-sustaining center.

Prior to joining the JCCH, Andrew worked in the pharmaceutical industry in Honolulu as an executive neurology specialist.

Andrew, a former Cherry Blossom Festival Queen and past CBF planning chair, is a graduate of Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree in economics and Japanese studies.

Allicyn Hikida Tasaka
Chief Operating Officer

As the JCCH continues to grow both internally and externally, Allicyn Hikida Tasaka helps to manage the Center’s overall operations and administration. She represents the Center as a member of the Old Town Moiliili Business Association and Marukai Consumer Advisory Board.

The former executive director of Hawai‘i Meals on Wheels and the Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women came to the JCCH in 2005.

Tasaka is a graduate of the University of Washington with a BA degree in Communications. She has over 20 years of experience in media, public relations and governmental affairs. In 2001, she received a Community Service Award from the Hawai‘i Women Lawyers and the “Woman of the Year” award from the Hawai‘i State Federation of the Business and Professional Women in 2000.

Shayna Coleon
Membership/Public Relations Director

Ensuring that the public is continuously aware of the JCCH and its activities as well as maintaining an informed and satisfied membership base are top priorities for Shayna Coleon.

A former staff writer for The Honolulu Advertiser and The Hawai‘i Herald, Coleon manages the JCCH’s relations with the media and public, oversees the organization’s membership of more than 5,000 individuals and coordinates ongoing efforts to sustain and fortify the growing membership base.

Joining the JCCH staff in 2003, Coleon, a graduate of the University of San Francisco, is editor of the Legacies newsletter and is responsible for all the written content and images intended for the public and media.

Lei Fujimura
Administrative Assistant

Leianne Fujimura helps with any administrative and board needs, manages accounts payable, invoicing and prepares the payroll.

Holding former secretarial positions at Dick Pacific, Luana Hills Country Club and Pacific Guardian Life, Fujimura joined the JCCH staff in 2005.

Fujimura, a graduate of Brigham Young University, majored in Japanese and minored in secretarial science tracks the various departments’ expenditures and incoming revenue.

Derrick S. Iwata
Volunteer Director and Education Programs Assistant

As a non-profit organization, the JCCH utilizes volunteers in every facet of its operations. Derrick S. Iwata manages the organization’s more than 200 volunteers.

Iwata, who started off as a JCCH volunteer in 2000, was hired part-time in 2001 and promoted as a full-time employee in 2004. Iwata also serves as the JCCH Education Assistant.

Iwata is a graduate of the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa College of Education.

Michelle Miyashiro
Office Assistant

Ensuring that JCCH correspondents are mailed out in a timely manner, logging the incoming monetary and in-kind donations and organizing the Center’s membership database are just some of Michelle Miyashiro’s daily tasks.

Coming aboard the staff in 2005, it is thanks to Miyashiro’s efficient assistance to the membership department that the JCCH is able to service its growing membership and continue in its efforts to increase these numbers.

Miyashiro is a graduate of the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa who majored in Japanese.

Brian Niiya
Resource Center Director

Though joining the JCCH as the first-ever Resource Center director in 2006 came with its challenges, Brian Niiya has enjoyed the varied tasks and projects the job entails.

A former staff member at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles and the UCLA Asian American Studies Center, Niiya was selected to manage the JCCH department that houses more than 8,000 books in English and Japanese, photos, archival collections of manuscripts, audiovisual materials and rare diaries and journals of Hawai‘i Issei.

A writer, public historian, curator and editor of numerous publications on the Japanese American experience, including the award-winning Encyclopedia of Japanese American History: An A-to-Z Reference from 1868 to the Present, Niiya also leads the research and creation of the JCCH historical exhibitions. He also staffs the Hawai‘i Confinement Sites Committee.

Gerard K.Orbello
Programs Director

Organizing the logistics and coordinating all of the JCCH’s various programs, festivals and events is Gerard Orbello’s task at hand.

Orbello, who joined the JCCH in December 2007, managed the event planning efforts at the ‘Ilima Hotel as its conference center director, served as the concierge department supervisor at the Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties. In addition, Orbello was the student services coordinator at Hawaii Business College.

Orbello received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Chaminade University and is scheduled to complete an accelerated master’s program at Chaminade University in June.

Christy Mari Takamune
Gallery Director

With a keen eye for visual flair and artistic appreciation, Christy Mari Takamune is the gallery mastermind who builds, formulates and stylizes every exhibition at the JCCH.

Takamune has a bachelor’s in fine arts from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, an associates in science in fashion technology from the Honolulu Community College and retail experience as a fine jewelry merchandiser and manager.

Barbara Ishida
Gift Shop Manager

A long-time facet at the JCCH, Barbara Ishida was invited in 1995 to volunteer her time to manage the Gift Shop—a 500 square-foot area connected to the JCCH Community Gallery—and has supervised it ever since.

Twelve years later, and with the help from a group of her good friends who volunteered alongside the Nisei Mānoa resident, Ishida has fashioned the Gift Shop into an array of nostalgic Japanese ceramic wares, books and antique doll sets.