Go back to PRESS RELEASES
Mary Graybill, APR, Fellow PRSA,
Graybill Communications
310-441-2899
mary@graybillcom.com
Go For Broke National Education Center Honors Founding Board, Sets Stage for Future
20-year-old nonprofit celebrates origins, continues to grow programs
TORRANCE, CA (June 8, 2009)– At a celebratory luncheon marking its 20 years of steady growth and successful programs on June 6, 2009, the Go For Broke National Education Center (GFBNEC) paid tribute to its founding board and laid out its course for the future. The nonprofit organization also presented its prestigious Go For Broke Award to six state and national political leaders, and premiered a new 20-year retrospective video, Keep the Legacy Alive, by award-winning producer/director Craig Yahata and editor Mikey Fornicoia. Keynote speaker and honoree Congressman Adam Schiff (D-San Gabriel Valley) offered his own heartfelt tribute to the Japanese American veterans of World War II whose bravery, sacrifice and values shape the organization.
"I am truly honored to be recognized by such a wonderful organization whose members are real-life heroes," said Congressman Adam Schiff. "It was a treat to get to spend time today with so many of these veterans who served our country with such pride, bravery, and courage. I am very hopeful that the Congress will soon recognize the Go For Broke regiments for their heroic efforts with Congress's most prestigious award, the Congressional Gold Medal."
Additional Go For Broke Award recipients were United States Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii), Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downtown Los Angeles), Congressman Mike Honda (D-Santa Clara County), Congressman Neil Abercrombie (D-Honolulu) and former California Assemblyman George Nakano (D-Los Angeles South Bay). The awards recognize support, encouragement and significant contributions to GFBNEC's mission and programs.
"The veterans and every one of us with Go For Broke National Education Center are deeply grateful to each of our honorees for all of their hard work," said Christine Sato-Yamazaki, president and chief executive officer of the organization. "The $4 million we received from Congress and the $1 million from the State of California fund work on the state-of-the-art National Education Center we're building beside the Go For Broke Monument."
The organization plans to break ground for its Go For Broke National Education Center adjacent to the Go For Broke Monument in fall 2010 with completion expected in summer or early fall 2012. Housed in its own building designed to meet its unique needs, GFBNEC will enrich programs to educate generations of students in classrooms nationwide about the Nisei or second-generation Japanese American soldiers' contributions to America's history. It will advance efforts to teach the values of citizenship, leadership and patriotism they showed. It will strengthen the mission to keep the legacy of the brave young Japanese American soldiers alive when veterans are no longer able to tell their stories. It will give voice to the personal experiences of the soldiers whose names are inscribed on the Monument and Legacy Wall a few feet away. And it will give students, teachers, tourists and more visitors full benefit of an immersive interactive Nisei veterans' exhibit. GFBNEC will also have headquarters located in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo District.
The anniversary luncheon with a capacity crowd of 220 Nisei veterans, their wives, families, friends and supporters was held at the Japanese American National Museum located a few hundred yards south of the Go For Broke Monument. The luncheon was preceded by an anniversary celebration staged on the plaza surrounding the organization's Go For Broke Monument.
In addition to the 10-year-old Go For Broke Monument, unveiled on June 5, 1999, the GFBNEC's mission of educating students and the public about the contributions and values of the Nisei veterans includes a Hanashi oral history program. Hanashi volunteers have created one of the largest oral history libraries in the United States and continue to add to it. Veterans featured in these video interviews talk about their experiences in war and Occupied Japan. Hanashi has completed close to 1,000 interviews and more than 700 are available on the GFBNEC website at www.goforbroke.org.
The Nisei or second-generation Japanese American soldiers rose above suspicion and mistrust to fight and sacrifice themselves for honor in defense of the United States. Their story is an important part of America's history that resonates today with multiple generations of Americans and ethnicities. Additional information about the Go For Broke National Education Center is available at www.goforbroke.org.
Go back to PRESS RELEASES
