Dear members and friends:
Thank you for your support of the Japan-America Society of the State of Washington for the past challenging year.  Our last in-person inside event was February 2020 for the Empowering Women in Japan and the U.S. We did a cold, wet, but fun 60th Golf Tournament last September. This year, we expect to have a great 61st Golf Tournament on July 28th complete with the awards dinner at the Golf Club at Newcastle. Please join us.

Operations: Our staff is fully back in the office. All are fully vaccinated and we welcome other fully vaccinated members and friends to visit on a limited basis. Our healthy procedures include temperature checks, limiting the number and timing of visitors. Please schedule appointments if you would like to visit our office.

Microsoft Teams and Zoom:  Our standard communications platform is Microsoft Teams thanks to our non-profit subscription to Office 365, but we have become proficient with Zoom as well. In addition, we have developed skills in streaming to other platforms, such as YouTube Live and other services with video production tools. We had the usual learning challenges early on and have worked hard to be able to produce better webinar type as well as live events.

New skills and capabilities: With new videography and video editing equipment and skills, we are working to expand the media presence for our speakers and members. We are looking at ways to provide greater visibility for our members and speakers. We are open to your suggestions on the services that can provide greater membership benefits.

Please stay safe and diligent as we all do our part to address COVID-19.

Best regards,
Dale L. Watanabe
Executive Director