Chicago Japanese Club Celebrates 2023 New Year
Everyone Enjoys Fun Afternoon
Chicago Japanese Club’s members, their friends, families, guests and volunteers get together to celebrate 2023 New Year.
The Chicago Japanese Club (CJC) celebrated 2023 New Year at the Seville in Streamwood, Northwest suburb, on January 21. The celebration was held in-person for the first time in three years, and about 100 people of CJC members with their families and friends, guests and volunteers got together. All attendees enjoyed a gorgeous new year’s meal, mochi cake pounding, Japanese traditional music of koto and taiko drumming and ruffle.
Special guests were Hiroshi Tajima, Consul General of Japan in Chicago; Tom Hayes, Mayor of Arlington Heights; Consul Motohiro Hoshino; Tetsuro Mitachi, Executive Director of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Yumi Iguchi of the Sukura Radio; and high school students who volunteered to set up the celebration venue.
CJC President Koh Fujimoto, Consul General Tajima and Mayor Hayes made greeting speeches for a new year.
MC Yuki Juretic opened the New Year’s party, and then the attendees sang the national anthem of both Japan and the United States led by Mai Shibahara.
Opening Remarks by President Koh Fujimoto
CJC President Koh Fujimoto
President Koh Fujimoto welcomed all attendees and said, “We are delighted to have the first face-to-face New Year’s celebration in three years,” and congratulated Manabu Yoshiike, former CJC President and current Chairman of the Chicago Japanese American Council (CJAC), for receiving Foreign Minister’s Commendation for his hard work and contribution to the Japanese/Japanese American community and local communities.
Fujimoto stated that CJC had the 30th anniversary this year and expressed his appreciation for the founder Toshio Ogino, former Presidents, Executive Officers, Directors, past and present members, who had devoted themselves to maintain and grow CJC.
Fujimoto said, “Our goal today is that you enjoy this event with your old and new friends. So let us begin the New Year’s celebration.”
CJC Mission Statement: Based on interaction and mutual help among members, we strive to promote cultural exchange, mutual understanding, and education as a member of the local community and aim to participate in the creation of a healthy and prosperous community.
New Year’s Greetings from Consul General Hiroshi Tajima
Consul General Hiroshi Tajima
Consul General Hiroshi Tajima congratulated CJC reopening its in-person New Year’s celebration after two years of virtual Shin-nen-kai due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also thanked CJC members for their cooperation and understanding to support the Consulate General’s activities.
Consul General Tajima applauded CJC’s comprehensive activities and services such as seminars on education, health and traditional Japanese culture; hosting computer salon, calligraphy classes, free market and golf tournaments; offering shaved ice service at community picnic; helping household troubles by Otasukeman.
He also expressed his sincere impressions not only on the fun program of celebration, but also warm care to provide ride services for attendees who did not drive a car.
Consul General Tajima mentioned about the 50th anniversary of the Chicago-Osaka sister city relations and the Midwest U.S.- Japan Conference, which will be held in Tokyo this year, and said that people to people exchanges in the Midwest have become active due to Japan’s decision to significantly ease its border measures last October. He also said, “Japan-U.S. relation has ever become strong as we saw it from January 13th meeting between Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden.”
He also talked about one of his goals since he had taken his assignments in Chicago. That was strengthening the relationship among Japanese residents, Japanese Americans and Americans who were interested in Japan. “This year, I’m looking forward to continuing to advance this goal and I hope this contributes to developing foundations for even stronger Japan-Midwest and Japan-U.S. relations,” Consul General Tajima said.
New Year’s Greetings by Mayor Tom Hayes
Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes
The Village of Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes thanked CJC, which has its headquarters in the Village, for the invitation to join the New Year’s party again after years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since he became Mayor, he has attended every CJC’s New Year’s celebration and provided first-hand information about happenings in the Village. He was a member of the Village Board of Arlington Heights for 32 years and a person who knows about every inch of the Village. He welcomed the Japanese and Japanese American community to his town.
Mayor Hayes visited the Consulate General’s website before he was coming to the party and said in his witty remarks, “One of Consul General’s goals for this year in the Midwest was to strengthen good relationship that we have. So, I’m looking forward to doing that here this afternoon.”
According to Mayor Hayes, Arlington Heights is one of the 15 biggest towns in Illinois with population of over 77,000. He said that he was proud of a story written by the Daily Herald which reflected the family oriented nature of Arlington Heights’ value. “We try to represent and strengthen the value throughout each year,” and he continued, “We have a 200 million budget, so we are very big community. I’d like to call us a largest small town in America because of family value that we’d like to exhibit.”
The Mayor also stressed the importance of successful businesses in the town. During the pandemic, businesses were struggling to get through the difficult time, so his town and residents together helped those businesses. For instance, outdoor eating was allowed to open, and the people in the town took meals there to support the businesses.
The Mayor also mentioned that another thing happened during past three years was increase in diversity. The same tendency was happening in the Northwest suburb communities as well.
Mayor Hayes said, “We really very welcome the diversity, nationality of cultures, which can help us to enhance the quality of life in our community one way or another.”
When you meet Mayor Hayes, the first thing you want to ask is BEARS!
He talked about the current situation of the deal between Arlington Heights and Bears. The Arlington Park Race Track moved out, and 326 acres of the land are for sale.
Mayor Hayes said, “I’m very sorry to see that. The race track really goes back to about 100 years in our town, but this is once in a life time opportunity to develop 326 acres of prime real estate in our community.
He said the deal was moving very slowly for a year and a half, but Arlington Heights, Bears and many stakeholders have been working on the deal together with important people from Metra Rail, Cook County, state of Illinois and more to make it happen.
“So I’m hopeful that the next some weeks, we are going to see final decision made for the Village of Arlington Height, then difficult work will start because purchase the property doesn’t mean to build a stadium. So, that’s Stage II, but I’m certainly hopeful,” the Mayor said.
As a great fan of the Bears, Mayor Hayes said, “We are hoping that is going to be in Arlington Heights for 50 years or more as their new home for many, many decades to come. So, certainly exciting things are happening in the Village of Arlington Heights.”
With his shining eyes as a bitsy bear, Mayor Hayes concluded his speech saying, “Thank you for your contributions to the Village enhancing the quality of life in our community. I’m looking forward to further strengthening our great relationship and really looking forward to mochi pounding just for congratulating New Year.”
CJAC Chair Manabu Yoshiike (L), Mayor Tom Hayes (C) and Consul General Hiroshi Tajima pound mochi (rice cake) for good fortune over the coming year.
After the Mayor’s exciting speech, the mochi pounding ceremony started with a rallying call, “Yoisho!”
According to MC Juretic, mochi is traditionally eaten in New Year’s day in hope for gaining good fortune over the coming year.
After the mochi ceremony, all attendees sang a piece “Ichigetsu Ichijitsu (January the First)” followed by a toast made by President Fujimoto.
After a gorgeous osechi luncheon, which was assorted in a two-story box, entertainments started.
Tokiko Kimura performed two piece of koto music, “Naru Kami” and “Rokudan no Shirabe”, and traditional koto sound evoked an atmosphere of a new year’s day.
Kimura was born in the family of famous koto player and koto music composer, Michio Miyagi (1984-1956) and started to play koto and piano when she was very young.
The next was taiko drumming performance presented by the Tsukasa Taiko. Tatsu Aoki, leader of the group, explained that their performance on the stage was distinguished Tokyo shitamachi (downtown) style of taiko drumming.
Aoki was born in Tokyo and raised in a geisha house. He grew up with the taiko sound as a lullaby and has brought taiko drumming and traditional Japanese musical instruments into jazz and blues genre and developed many collaboration opportunities with the Western music.
CJC brings Yoshiko Urayama (L) a good fortune by winning the first prize. She poses for a photo with MC Yuki Juretic.
The last entertainment was thrilling raffle. Each time MC Juretic announced a winning number, shouts of joy came from the audience. Many lucky attendees got a chunk of cash, gift card from restaurants, precious wine, box of cup noodles and more.
All attendees enjoyed the shin-nen-kai and went home with smiles.