DOR 2024

GVJCI Day of Remembrance 2024
Terminal Island: Lost But Not Forgotten

Saturday, February 24, 2024, 2-4PM
GVJCI Main Hall

The Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute’s (GVJCI) 2024 Day of Remembrance will highlight the history and stories of the Japanese American fishing village community of Terminal Island in San Pedro during WWII. In a live in-person program on Saturday, February 24th from 2-4pm, the GVJCI will feature a documentary film about the history of Terminal Island followed by a panel discussion featuring Michael Enomoto, architect of the San Pedro Terminal Island Japanese Fishing Village Memorial, June Miyamoto Donovan, President of the Terminal Islander’s Club, and David Metzler, director of the documentary we are screening, and Edgar Award-winning author Naomi Hirahara will moderate the panel discussion and Q&A. We hope the community will come away with a stronger understanding of our local South Bay Japanese American history, as well as a desire to learn more from our community partners and Gardena Valley JCI.

Registration is NOT required and admission is free.

This program is partially funded by the UCLA Asian American Studies Center and the Aratani C.A.R.E. Award.

Meet the Moderator:

Naomi Hirahara, Edgar Award-Winning Writer

Naomi Hirahara is an Edgar Award-winning author of multiple traditional mystery series and noir short stories. Her Mas Arai mysteries, which have been published in Japanese, Korean and French, feature a Los Angeles gardener and Hiroshima survivor who solves crimes. Her first historical mystery, Clark and Division, which won a Mary Higgins Clark Award, follows a Japanese American family’s move to Chicago in 1944 after being released from a California wartime detention center. A former journalist with The Rafu Shimpo newspaper, Naomi has also written numerous non-fiction history books and curated exhibitions. She has also written a middle-grade novel, 1001 Cranes. Her follow-up to Clark and Division, Evergreen, was released last August. She is the co-writer with Geraldine Knatz of Terminal Island: Lost Communities on America's Edge, a hardcover book ($45) being re-issued by Angel City Press at Los Angeles Public Library this March. The book will be available for sale early at the GVJCI Day of Remembrance event.

MEET THE SPEAKERS:

June Miyamoto Donovan, President, Terminal Islanders

June Miyamoto Donovan is the current president of Terminal Islanders. Her father, Arthur Ichiro Miyamoto, was from Terminal Island, and would help with the events such as the annual picnic.
June has been actively involved with the Terminal Islanders since the 1990s. She would make the centerpieces for the New Year’s Luncheon and her family ran the children’s games at the picnic. She has been on the Terminal Islanders board since November of 2011, serving as secretary. In 2017, she became president of the Terminal Islanders. Her goal was and is to keep the legacy of Terminal Island alive, as many people are not aware of the existence of the fishing village. June loves ondo dancing and makes happi coats to be worn at various obons and community events, which has helped bring attention to the Terminal Islanders.

Michael A. Enomoto, FAIA

Michael. A. Enomoto, FAIA is the Managing Partner at Gruen Associates. Best known for his significant practice as an Executive Architect in collaboration with Design Architects across the world, Enomoto has led landmark projects of various sizes and types totaling over $1.5 billion in
construction costs, including the Los Angeles Convention Center and the US Embassy in Berlin. Significant projects include the Terminal Islander’s Memorial and the Terasaki Budokan. Mr. Enomoto joined Gruen Associates in 1973, was named Head of the Construction Administration Department in 1976 and Vice President in 1980. He became a Partner in 1997 and Managing Partner in 2009.

A graduate of Cal Poly, SLO, Enomoto was the 2007 AIA/LA President, the 2013 AIA California President, the 2010 President of the Southern California Development Forum, the 2001 to 2003 President of the Asian American Architects/Engineers Association and served on the City of Los Angeles Quality and Productivity Commission.

He is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects and was the 2018 AIA Los Angeles Chapter Presidential Gold Medal Awardee, the highest award given by AIA/LA.

David Metzler, Director and Producer, The Lost Village of Terminal Island

David Metzler grew up a few miles from Terminal Island, but was not aware that a community once existed there until he happened across its history while working at the International Student Center at UCLA. A Los Angeles mural tour depicting stories of displacement in California led him learn more about the remarkable community of Terminal Island and the lifelong bonds shared by the children who grew up there. Their perseverance and spirit of this community lead the State of California’s Civil Liberties Public Education Program (CCLPEP) to grant funding for collecting and digitizing a cataloging of over 3,000 images of Terminal Islanders and the production of a mosaic poster from 1,200 of those images. The CCLPEP continued funding with a grant to produce The Lost Village of Terminal Island documentary.

David Metzler lives in Southern California where he owns & runs a technology consulting company for the past 20 years. He volunteers in Culver City to promote safe communities, especially safe and equitable streets for all. He enjoys photography and international travel to experience different cultures throughout the world.