8th Annual Blossom Picnic

8th Annual Blossom Picnic
Blossom Picnic poster

Date: Saturday April 14th from 11am to 2:30pm
Location: Heiwa Garden at Peace Park

Program:
11:00 Koto performance by Akiko Otsu
11:15 Tai Chi Demo by Seven Stars Tai Chi
11:40 Aikido Demo by Salt Spring Aikikai
12:00 Karate Demo by Brenda Guiled and the Karate Kids
12:30 Taiko Drum performance by Jacob Derksen
1:00 Salt Spring Japanese Children Choir
1:15 Salt Spring Japanese Singers
1:40 African Drum performance by Laurent Boucher and Iroko

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Charcoal Pit Kiln Research Project

Galiano charcoal kiln

Kiln on Galiano on Bluff Park

We are very pleased to announce the launch of an exciting project to conduct research on the Japanese Canadian charcoal kilns of the Gulf Islands. We have received a one-time $24,000 grant from the BC | Canada 150: Celebrating B.C. Communities and their Contributions to Canada Fund offered by the BC Museum Association, and a one-time $2,500 grant from the Endowment Fund of the National Association of Japanese Canadians.

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Uprooting Presentation at the Library

Uprooting Presentation Post 2017

2017! This year is Canada’s 150th birthday and also the 75th anniversary of the uprooting of the Japanese-Canadians from the BC Coast.

The Japanese Garden Society will be holding a month-long presentation about the history of the Japanese-Canadians, focusing on the uprooting that happened during WW II. You may find some parallels to what is going on in the present world.

The Uprooting
1942: The War Measures Act and Japanese-Canadians
Location: Salt Spring Library Program Room
Date: February 1st to 27th
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday 10am to 5am
(When the Program Room is not in use for the other event) Continue reading “Uprooting Presentation at the Library”

Taiko Workshop

Date: Thursday April 14th
Location: Core Inn top floor
Time: 6:00 ~ 7:00 Youth program $20 / 7:30 ~9:00 Regular program $30

Spots are limited. Please email to register: rkanesaka@gmail.com
Taiko drummer Keita Kanazashi from Japan will be offering a rare opportunity for those interested in trying their hands on the taiko. The taiko drum is a Japanese instrument that is played with two wooden sticks. Participants will learn about taiko notation and basic rhythms at this hour-and-a-half, hands-on workshop.

6th Annual Blossom Picnic

Blossom Picnic 2016

6th Annual Blossom Picnic
@ the Heiwa Garden in the Peace Park
Saturday April 9th 11:00 ~ 2:30

In a celebration of spring, the Japanese Garden Society will hold the 6th annual Blossom Picnic on Saturday April 9th from 11:00 to 2:30.
Join us for music, martial art presentations, Japanese home-style sushi lunches, calligraphy and tea ceremony demos, and many more activities.

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Japanese Garden Society AGM

Date: Thursday, February 18th, 2016
Time: 3:30 to 5:00pm
Location: SS Public Library Project Room

Guest Speaker: Brian Smallshaw: “The Dispossession of Japanese-Canadian Land on Saltspring”

We are having a guest speaker for this year’s AGM. Brian Smallshaw will share findings from his research into the uprooting of Japanese Canadians from Saltspring during World War Two. Based primarily on work carried out at the University of Victoria, Library and Archives Canada and in personal interviews, his talk will focus on the land that was taken from Japanese-Canadians and sold against their will, and provide insights into this unhappy chapter of the island’s history.

After the talk, we will have our annual general meeting.