The Ambassador. Fall/Winter, 2019

The Ambassador Fostering a community of inquisitive learners and independent thinkers, inspired to be their best selves, empowered to make a difference.

TIMMY JACOBSSON ’06

Brian Kelley and his alumnus successor

Fall/Winter 2019

CHELSEA JONES ’11

Logistics coordinator for Australia’s Wallabies

The American School in Japan

JENNIFER RIZZOTTI ’92

On playing and coaching women’s basketball

STEVE HUG ’70

Profile of the two-time Olympic gymnast

Features

04

A Solid Pass

12 17

Brian Kelley and his successor in the Activites and Athletics office, Timmy Jacobsson ’06

In this Issue 28

Paralympic Undokai Eighth-graders explore para-sports

32

Borderless Learning

Family Business Chelsea Jones ’11 on rugby and working with the Wallabies

From Pommel Horse to Mustang Steve Hug ’70 on his gymnastic career

22

If Better is Possible, Good is Not Enough Jennifer Rizzotti ’92 women's basketball player and coach

36

The ELC visits teamLab Borderless art museum

Safeguarding: The Next Level

Monica Clear on Keeping Children Safe

40

(Travis Bell/ NBAE/Getty Images)

Lessons from Space Bobak Ferdowsi ’97 speaks at ASIJ’s Space Conference

More 03 \\ Head of School’s Message 45 \\ Fundraising Report 59 \\ Reunions 70 \\ Upcoming Reunions 72 \\ Class Agents 74 \\ Alumni Portal 75 \\ Artifacts 76 \\ Obituaries 80 \\ The Big Short

Director of Communications Matt Wilce Assistant Director of Communications Jarrad Jinks Graphic Designer Ryo Ogawa Communications Assistant & Graphic Design Matthew Worsley Interim Director of Advancement Mary Margaret Mallat Assistant Director of Development and Alumni Relations Claire Lonergan Database Specialist Jean Ren Photography Jarrad Jinks Ryo Ogawa Illustration Matthew Worsley Editorial Inquiries communications@asij.ac.jp alumni@asij.ac.jp —

The American School in Japan 1-1-1 Nomizu, Chofu-shi Tokyo 182-0031, Japan The Ambassador is published

by The American School in Japan ASIJ alumni, families, faculty and friends receive The Ambassador

2

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

HEAD OF SCHOOL

Message

Since the last issue of The Ambassador, there has been a lot to celebrate at ASIJ. We started the school year with a dynamic new website and the successful launch of ASIJ’s strategic vision at a State of the School conference for parents. There, we shared some of our thinking about strategy over the next five years. We also welcomed our new deputy head of school for learning, Scott Wilcox, who will play a vital role in us delivering on our vision. ASIJ also became the first international school to receive Level 2 Certification from Keeping Children Safe (see page 36 for more detail) in recognition of the work we have done around our strategic priority of safeguarding.

One of the strands of our strategic vision focuses on students finding their element and much of the content of this issue of The Ambassador speaks to that concept. From current students pursuing their passion for writing as contributors here—see feature on page 40—to alumni making an impact in their chosen fields, there are many examples in these pages of students who found their element at ASIJ. Many of our stories this issue focus on sports as Japan recently hosted the Rugby World Cup and will welcome Olympians and Paralympians at Tokyo 2020. I am sure you will be interested to learn of ASIJ’s connections to these major sporting events and our alumni involved with them who embody values we believe our extensive co-curricular program develops.

The two individuals responsible for that fantastic activities and athletics program are featured on our cover.

Brian Kelley has done a sterling job as our activities and athletics director over the last eight years, adding tournaments and developing our program. When Brian retires next summer, he will be succeeded by Timmy Jacobsson ’06, our current assistant director of activities and athletics. I am excited to see an alumnus who has lived and breathed the Mustang Spirit since he started at ASIJ in kindergarten take on this role and further refine what is an important part of the ASIJ experience.

A few months ago we held a community reception in Tokyo and it was great to see many alumni from across the decades come together to reconnect along with former faculty and alumni parents. I am looking forward to meeting many more ASIJers at our community reception in New York next January—more information about past and future events can be found in the alumni section.

With warm regards,

Jim Hardin Head of School

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

3

A Solid Pass Brian Kelley, director of activities and athletics and Timmy Jacobsson ’06, assistant director of activities and athletics, talk with Jarrad Jinks on retirement, transitioning roles and the sportier side of activities and athletics.

The grills light up and the bleachers gradually fill with students, their families and faculty. As you enter the front of school, the once distant, nondescript sounds now paint a clear picture—rackets thwack tennis balls on the roof-top courts, sneakers squeak on the high school gym’s hardwood floor. In passing, you catch a glimpse through the open gym door of a volleyball net and a desperate dive. Cheers overpower a hundred nearby conversations as you enter the courtyard. Even louder, the announcer blares over the loudspeaker. You notice the football game has already started.

Spirit Day is a long-lived annual tradition. It runs smoothly, every year. The scale seems effortless, yet it’s impossible to see every game as seven different sports and fourteen different matches overlap each other hour-on-hour, throughout the day. Days like this, no matter how seamless, are a grand effort—the sports

4

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

alone require collaborations between parent groups, student volunteers and faculty. All of them liaise with our Activities and Athletics department, run by director Brian Kelley and assistant director, Timmy Jacobsson.

In his nine years as the assistant director, Timmy Jacobsson has not only helped coordinate the school’s co-curricular programming but has also taught and coached in high school. However, Timmy’s ties to ASIJ run much deeper than his nine-year tenure in the office.

Timmy Jacobsson was adopted by Bill (FF ’75–’08, AP ’92–’06) and Sandra Jacobsson (FF ’72–’77, ’81–’87, ’95–’96, AP ’92–’06), both ASIJ faculty who dedicated over thirty years to ASIJ—as parents and as faculty in the physical education department. He joined Susan Huber’s (FF ‘88–’17, AP ‘88–’05) class for his first day of kindergarten and continued at ASIJ until he graduated with the Class

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

5

of ‘06. Timmy returned to ASIJ in 2011, flexing his degree in sports management and exercising his previous experience as a fitness instructor in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Today, nine years after stepping foot back on campus, he prepares to step up to the plate as director of activities and athletics—a role that his father also performed at ASIJ, back before his ASIJ days. “Quite the pedigree,” as our outgoing director of activities and athletics, Brian Kelley, enthusiastically boasts on behalf of his successor.

For the past nine years—Brian started the same year as Timmy—the two have also presided over a program that encompases 170 different sports and activities across three divisions, serving our over 1650-strong student body. The department works not only with those students, but also faculty, coaches and parent groups such as Boosters and Friends of the Fine Arts (FOFA). It’s a large program, to say the least.

As Brian prepares for retirement, he reflects fondly on his time at ASIJ and how they’ve positioned Timmy to uphold and continue to improve the Mustang legacy. They take particular pride in the culture—one that is equal and unselfish.

Brian calls it the “Mustang’s Wa,” a concept that references harmony. “I don’t think any student feels that one sport is more important than another or that girls are more important than boys or vice versa. There’s a great sense of the Mustangs Wa. We all play for our team and we play for our school.” Timmy notes that, at ASIJ, the harmony and team-spirit extends well beyond the sidelines. Although they may not play, our sports program is very well supported by a group of nearly 250 student volunteers that keep score, student-coach, work with our athletic trainer and our lifeguards.

///////////////////////////////////////

Timmy in Susan Huber’s kindergarten class in 1993 experience of an exciting tournament atmosphere on campus.

So that’s a rather obvious addition we’ve made along with a couple of other things.

I think one of the things that, as I look back on my time here, I’m most proud or happy to see that there’s a lot of collegiality, in Tokyo, amongst the international schools, the group of athletic directors that serve it, the 10 schools that we work with. There’s a great feeling of friendship and support.

JJ

Timmy, I was wondering how the program has changed from when you were a student?

One of the big the biggest changes and it’s one of the really great things that we’ve done, or Brian actually, he’s gotten the teams to travel a lot more internationally. When I was in high school, I don’t think we really ever traveled—we pretty much stayed within the Far East Tournaments and we wouldn’t go anywhere else. But I think Brian’s done an amazing job of giving kids opportunities to explore other international schools and see what else is out there and see that there’s other students, there’s other communities. It’s a great change to the program that’s allowing us to venture outside of Japan and Korea and go to places like Shanghai, Manila, or Kuala Lumpur.

TJ

JJ

So what was the Activities and Athletics program like when you first started as compared to now?

ASIJ has been a big robust program for many, many years and I would look back on my start and say, “Gosh, I’m going to come to a school where you don’t have to do anything new or innovative, you just kind of keep the program going.” But as it turned out, there have been some important changes, additions and sort of tweaks to the system that I think have improved the program and made it more, lets say, friendly and accessible to students.

BK

Speaking from the K-12 perspective, we’ve added a great deal to the elementary and middle school programs. We’ve introduced things like tournaments on campus, which from my previous experience was something I found missing. We played so often away from school and did not often have the

6

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

That’s what the big change for me is. I think I went on one sports trip. Now, we have kids that go on three or maybe even four trips. And they’re all to these amazing countries where they have cultural experiences, they meet other kids, and we kind of share our own Mustang spirit with other people. And I think it’s a great opportunity for our program and for our students.

Timmy (fourth from left, middle row) with the 2006 wrestling team and Coach John Hohenthaner (far left, back row)

JJ

Timmy, how would you say the program has influenced you either as a former student or your life in general?

Well, I mean, as a student, I learned so many of those really important life lessons from my coaches, from all the experiences I’ve had playing sports and being part of activities, like learning about teamwork, integrity, like building a little grit, all those kinds of things have helped me get to where I am now. It’s funny, I’ve actually looked back at my high school wrestling coach, my high school football coaches, and they’ve had such a huge impact on my life and how I go about work, how I go about living my life like they were big figures in my life that helped me kind of build who I am and develop.

TJ

JJ

Is there any particular coach or moment that sticks out in your mind?

knows, takes a little bit of extra time. It’s in the evenings, on weekends, and people ask “how do you do it? Why do you do it?” And you know, Timmy was just mentioning the coaches that influenced him. I’ve said for years, I try to live up to the standard of the adults that were my coaches. So not just here in ASIJ but, I played sports in the 60s and 70s and when I think of all the dads and moms who contributed to my youth, you know, it really is trying to live up to the model they demonstrated.

It’s great to work with kids. It’s great to work in the world of sports. But, it does take a unique commitment sometimes.

Having strong influences, like Timmy just said, I know has motivated me, kept me thinking all along “try to live up to Bud Milke, try to live up to Jay Hollister, try to live up to Ace Hawkins”—the important people in my youth.

JJ

What role do co-curriculars play in a student’s education and development? How does it fit in with the core curriculum and academics?

It’s not a moment. It’s more like, I would say my TJ senior year for both wrestling and football I had John Seevers (FF ’97–’17, AP ’91–’06) and I had my dad.

And then I had John Hohenthaner (FF ’89–’07, AP ’94–’08) as a wrestling coach. Those three coaches, you can see how much energy they’re putting into the program, how much they care about the kids and how much they want you to do, that they’re always going to be there to support you. So I think that’s a huge thing that I always look back at. When I think of my high school experience, I can always think back to playing football with my dad and coach Seevers and wrestling with coach Hohenthaner.

You know, I often think that sometimes we lose the fact that school is supposed to be fun. You’re supposed to like coming into school and be excited to come to school and I think that is definitely the case here.

And the academics are the most important reason why you go to school but a robust co-curricular program just provides kids with so much that they really enjoy. There’s just a time as a teenager where you know you like performing or you love a particular sport. You have a passion for something.

If I can pick up on that just a little bit. Both Timmy and I are in a program in the school that, as everyone

It has also been proven in many a study that kids who are engaged in after school activities do better in the classroom.

BK

BK

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

7

Timmy with his wife and fellow teacher Megan Ortwein, the two met at ASIJ Brian and Timmy when they started in 2011 Brian updating the Yujo Volleyball Tournament bracket

And part of it is, you’re connected. You make more friends, you meet new teachers, you feel a sense of pride and you’re working on a team and working hard. I will say this, our kids like to work hard. I think we’ve translated the idea that hard work is fun. It makes us successful. And, you know, the idea that so many of us who’ve played sports in our career, now look back on our long term friendships, and many of them were carved on the court or the field.

I totally agree. ASIJ’s very strong academically, we’re also very strong in our activities, athletics and I think it gives kids something to look forward to at the end of the day. Like you are so worried about AP stats, your AP US and then you can step on the field or the court or the stage and it kind of gives you a second to forget about all that and you can focus on being part of your team, forging those friendships. In athletics and activities, you make those lifelong friends. Like, I’m still in a fantasy football league with the seniors from my football team. We still talk back and forth all the time. They’re great opportunities for kids to make solid relationships that don’t just go away when you go to college and or when you graduate college.

And when you have alumni come back they still want to meet up with their teammates, they still want to look at the

TJ

8

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

record boards that are everywhere. They take a lot of pride in participating in that, but it also helps them connect with others and it gives them an opportunity to, you know, stay in touch.

Our new core values are character, courage, compassion.

How do those relationships, those connections, the teamwork, the games, the wins, the losses—build character, courage and compassion in a student?

JJ

We have times when coaches talk to their kids individually, but there are also times let’s say in a recognition ceremony for a season of sport, where you have 150 or 200 kids gathered. We often mention the Mustang’s character because we are a welcome guest and opponent by other schools. They want to participate with us and there is there is a positive character commonality amongst our students. We don’t make excuses, we don’t get upset. We keep things in the right perspective. Now, how that translates to life is pretty obvious, but maybe it’s not so at times. We spend so little of our life as teenagers and young athletes and so much of our lives as adults, and we all know that as an adult, you face a lot of setbacks, and you’ve got to fall back on your own character.

BK

I t hink wit h b uilding c har ac ter, you’ve got TJ opportunities for young students, young adults to learn about how they can persevere through adversity, how they can have humility in success. And I think one of the things that our program does really well is when we do travel, like Brian was saying, we always get really positive feedback. Our kids are going up there. They are demonstrating the highest level of sportsmanship the highest level of integrity. They don’t even know some of these teams and they are stepping on the court and they’re showing that we’re representing ASIJ. We’re representing the Mustangs. And I think every place that we’ve gone so far that we’ve got an email from the AD or the coach saying, “hey, everyone just wants to let you know that we loved having you guys here. And you guys were a great example for all the other teams.”

And I think there’s so many aspects of one’s internal belief system and reputation, how you look at things and one of the most important things is keeping everything in perspective. I think we have through athletics here, communicated that these are important and valuable, but they’re not too important. They’re not the only thing.

People shouldn’t get broken up about not making a team or

BK

being on the JV and not on Varsity or not winning a championship. the effort, the attitude, trying your best is the most important thing. And that kind of carries out to all of us. You’re going to go through life and make some mistakes and things are going to go bad for you sometimes but some things are a lot more serious than others. And sports lets you really do something that’s important and valuable but at the end of the day, it’s not life and death. It’s not tragic. And you know, I think that kind of character is part of the Mustang’s character.

Courage is a challenging concept, I’d say the one of the most courageous things a young person can do is try something that they’re not sure about. Going out for a team is taking a risk. Playing a sport that you’ve never played before is taking a risk. Realizing you’re starting at a place that you’re going to have to work hard to get to where you want to go. It might be easier to say “I won’t do it”, “I don’t think I’d like to,” or “I know I’m not going to make it.” We really like to see our kids try. Try something new. Get involved in something, and that goes to any activity or sport.

TJ

Our kids are willing to put themselves out there. If you see us at one of the tournaments that we host, our kids usually do a pretty good job of going out

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

9

of the way to talk with the teams that are there. For example, we host the Yujo Volleyball tournament on campus. This year, we had the Varsity girls, they’re cooking breakfast for all the teams that were on campus, they’re in there having fun, they were trying to talk to all the girls, get them involved with things. So I think we help students kind of gain the courage to actually put themselves out there and try to connect with people but also to try new things, as Brian was saying, like having them do something that they’ve never done before.

And with compassion, you see our teams, how close they are. They truly care for each other. If you ever see the volleyball team, the soccer team or the cross country team, they’re always, in season or out of season, they’re always hanging out with each other, always looking out for each other. They are going team dinners they’re supporting each other all the time. It’s not just on the court, it’s off the court too.

But I do think at ASIJ, we’ve got a very unique group of students that build closeness within their team. We have a lot of new kids as well and that’s how they make friends. Maybe they hate moving to Japan and they’ve left their friends or whatever back wherever they’re coming from, but our teams are open and they’re willing to accept them. And it makes that transition that much easier.

JJ

Timmy, both your parents were ASIJ faculty in the PE department, did you feel that this was always the path that you’d follow?

It’s kind of funny, my parents would always like, when I was in high school, they would say, “Oh, you should be a teacher.” Of course I was a high school kid and so I was like, “no I’m not doing that at all costs.” But then I started to get into the physical fitness kind of stuff. I majored in sports management because I wasn't sure if I wanted to go into education. But I still knew from my experiences at ASIJ that I wanted to still be involved with sports and activities in some capacity. So definitely, I guess they kind of led me in that direction because they’re both PE teachers.

TJ

Yeah, quite early on we started thinking of ways to enrich Timmy’s background. I mean, we talked openly that this could be your position one year, one day.

I was never going to be here for many years because of my age. So, there was always going to be a transition. Basically in our office, Timmy and I do the same work. We have to delegate this program. It’s such a big program so that we often say it’s not that the work is so difficult, but the volume is high. There’s a lot of activity at this school, both on the field and off, so he’s been essentially doing everything that I’ve been doing and we just share the load a little bit—though there are times of course when the director has to take a particular role and direct vision.

BK

But yeah, Timmy’s been thought of as a potential candidate and I thought it was a no brainer to hire him. This is definitely a school where a little local knowledge about what the job entails and also how the school in Japan and how our relationships are with other schools is very important. It’s not an easy school to come into new, I found it quite challenging.

But Timmy’s definitely ready. The school’s in great shape as far as going forward.

JJ

Where do you see co-curriculars or program going in the future?

Well, the school is well over 115 years old and the value placed on co-curriculars is apparent to everyone. We’re well-supported. We’ll be looking at how tournaments meet the needs of our students and our coaches now that we’re starting to experience more international environments.

BK

We’re going to try and develop our international relationships a little bit more. And we’ve started.

We’re inviting teams from other countries to our tournaments, and we’re going to their tournaments. So we’re getting the Mustang brand out there.

TJ

I want to add one more thing that it’s been a goal since the moment I arrived here, and it’s amazing how challenging this is to accomplish, but we have a big desire to have relationships and friendships with Japanese high schools. We have a couple of friendships that we forged with Kawasaki High School and Rikkyo High School in particular. Tennis is a program that could really benefit from some Japanese sporting friendships. So that is a goal that I have some satisfaction with but I’m a bit disappointed that probably haven’t accomplished more in the realm of solid sporting relationships.

BK

JJ

Have they given you any advice after learning that you’ll be taking that director of the Activities and Athletics position?

I was actually texting my dad the other day and I think one of the things that stood out to me was that all the work you’re doing—it’s for the kids in the end.

Whatever you can do to make sure that they have good experience, whatever you can do to make sure that they feel supported then do it. I asked him because he was the athletic director long time ago for 10 years or something like that.

TJ

JJ

10

Brian, nine years together. Did you ever anticipate that Timmy might take over the whole program?

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

With a couple of things like that in mind, maybe some growth and some new athletic directions, solidifying international relationships and Japanese relationships, I think we have a couple of real solid goals to give us a vision for the future.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

11

Chelsea and her father Eddie Quarter Final match between England and Australia at Oita Stadium on October 19, 2019 (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

12

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Family Business Claire Lonergan talks to Chelsea Jones ’11 about her logistics role with the Wallabies and returning to Japan for the Rugby World Cup.

Rugby and Japan are twin threads that run through the Jones family. Alumni parent Eddie Jones (AP ’09–’11), the son of a Japanese-American mother and Australian father, began playing the sport in high school and went on to join teams in Australia and the United Kingdom. He left the field to teach and coach, meeting Chelsea’s mother Hiroko during his time at the International Grammar School in Sydney. Shortly after Chelsea’s birth, Jones gave up his career as a teacher and school principal to coach his former club Randwick before heading to Japan to coach at Tokai University, Suntory Sungoliath and work with Japan’s national team as the assistant coach. The family returned to Australia in 1998 and Jones went on to coach the ACT Brumbies to their first title before taking over as head coach of the Wallabies, Australia’s national team.

A return to Japan in 2009, brought Jones back to Suntory Sungoliath and Chelsea to ASIJ, where she joined the high school as a junior. Chelsea would graduate in 2011 and the following year Jones

took over as head coach of the Brave Blossoms, Japan’s national team, going on to lead them to the 2015 Rugby World Cup and an upset win over South Africa. Following the tournament, Jones was appointed head coach for the England team. In the interim, Chelsea had graduated from college and begun her own career in rugby working on logistics with the Australian national team.

It was the recent Rugby World Cup hosted by Japan which saw both father and daughter return to Japan—Eddie with the England team and Chelsea with the Wallabies. The first Rugby World Cup to be held in Asia, the tournament attracted a record 99.3 percent attendance at grounds in the 48 matches with 1.84m tickets sold and a total economic impact for the hosts valued at ¥437 billion. A further 1.13m supporters watched games at the fanzones, which included an area at Chofu Station. With many of the games played at the Tokyo Stadium near Tobitakyu, ASIJ was close to the action—Chelsea and the Wallabies even used the School as a staging ground prior to their game at the stadium.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

13

CL

How did your father’s work influence your interest in rugby? Were you interested in the sport as a child?

Growing up in the rugby environment, which allowed me to travel the world as a child, definitely influenced my interest in rugby. In a way, I didn’t really have a choice—I just had to love it! I enjoyed swimming and tennis as a child, but to be honest I was never as interested in what was going on “on the field” as opposed to, off.

CJ

CL

How did you end up working for the Wallabies?

I worked at Rugby Australia, which is the governing body of Rugby Union in Australia, for over three years in an administration and logistics role for teams which was office-based and did not involve any touring. From there, I was approached to join the Wallabies at the start of 2018.

CL

This was your first Rugby World Cup. How did it differ from other tournaments?

It was totally different from any other international tournament or game I have been involved in. The stakes are so much higher and the involvement of 20 countries makes for an interesting campaign. Being able to meet colleagues from all of the different teams was a highlight for me. We all had so much in common but at the same time were from totally different worlds, but rugby had brought us all together.

CJ

CL

Did your first hand knowledge of Japan help?

CJ

CL

What is your day to day work like?

Every single day is so different. The first six months of the year involves a lot of office-based work where I plan for the back-end of the year which is when we are in season. The second six months of the year we are on the road domestically and internationally. I suppose the main differences between the first and second half of the year is that one half I have a proper desk, and the second half I am working on the run in hotels, airports and stadiums. I think I have even had to open my laptop in the back of a truck once in Argentina!

Definitely. Being able to speak Japanese was a huge bonus for me. My job entails so much attention to detail that being able to skip the translation stage and speak directly to people made it a very comfortable experience for me.

CJ

CL

Were there any unique challenges?

CJ

CL

What are your major responsibilities for the team?

I manage all day to day operations of the team—my main focus is to ensure that everything off the field runs seamlessly. My job is to make sure the players and coaching staff have everything they need to allow them to succeed on the field.

CJ

CL

What do you enjoy most about working for the Wallabies?

CJ

I love working for the Wallabies because I feel honored that I can represent my country, and the guys in the team are awesome. They’re like real family to me.

CL

You’re on the road half the year, does traveling this much affect your personal life?

I don’t let it. The people close to me in my life understand my job and how demanding it is so I don’t feel pressure to try to “balance” my personal and professional life. The second six months of the year can be tough as I don’t have many home comforts or get to see close friends and family, but time goes so fast when we are on the road and I am constantly in touch with everyone back home.

CJ

14

Working in Japan was definitely challenging. The rigorous and procedural way in which they operate is very different to how we operate in Australia. There is not much room for movement once a plan has been committed to. There were a few heated conversations where I urgently needed to change something at the last minute and my Japanese was definitely being tested!

CJ

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

CL

As you and your father work for different teams— Eddie Jones is the head coach for the England team—is there any family rivalry between you?

CJ

No rivalry whatsoever.

CL

Will you be supporting England in the final?

CJ

Definitely—I am thrilled to see my father and his team doing so well.

CL

Have you faced any challenges being a woman in such a male dominated sport?

Sure, they have been small challenges here and there but nothing major. I am so lucky to live in a country where opportunities like this exist for women in sport. My team and organization don’t treat me any differently and they respect me much the same as my other colleagues. I want young girls to believe and know there are no barriers to what they want to achieve in life, and if there are, break them down!

CJ

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

15

Chelsea with the Australian rugby team at the welcome ceremony for the Wallabies in Hokkaido, Japan (Photo by Rugby AU Media/Stuart Walmsley)

CL

What is the most unexpected thing you can tell us about working for a sports team?

I can’t say that I was really shocked by anything as I have been around rugby my whole life. I have a few funny changing room stories, but they're probably not appropriate to share here!

CJ

CL

What do you like to do in your free time?

I love travelling mostly to somewhere warm and near a beach—Thailand is my favourite holiday destination. I also love spending quality time with my friends and family, going to the cinema (which forces me to switch my phone off!), drinking great coffee and eating even better food.

CJ

CL

Do you have any fond memories from ASIJ?

The friends that I made—I have a very close group from ASIJ who I am so grateful for. Even though the majority of them live in the United States now, and I don’t get to see them very often, every time I do it is like no time has passed whatsoever.

CJ

16

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

CL

How would you say ASIJ shaped who you are today?

The inclusive and all-encompassing nature of ASIJ is something I try to embody in myself. I treat everyone I come across in my personal and professional life with the same level of respect and embrace every opportunity with open arms. What’s the worst that can happen?! I absolutely loved going to school with students from all over the globe and learning about their backgrounds and stories of how they had ended up in Tokyo.

CJ

CL

You mentioned helping out with the ASIJ HS basketball team. How do you end up getting involved with the team?

My close friend was already involved and asked me if I wanted to help out. We had such fun and it taught us some great leadership skills at a young age. You could say my sports managerial career kick started there!

CJ

CL

Where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?

CJ

To be honest, I am not a long term planner. I take it day by day. Will keep you posted!

From Pommel Horse to Mustang Matt Wilce learns how Olympic gymnast Steve Hug ’70 came to Tokyo to train with Japan’s gold medal winners.

(Photo courtesey of Stanford Athletics) THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

17

Hug in his senior photo in ’70

“I started gymnastics at 10, though I didn't know it was a sport for the first year or two. Then I saw the ’64 Olympic trials and thought I might be able to do that—I was 12,” Steve Hug ’70 says, recalling how he got started as a gymnast. For some, the dream of becoming an Olympic gymnast is just that, but for Hug it would soon be a reality. In just four years, he would make the American team at the 1968 Mexico Games.

Hug had performed well in the Olympic trials and made the six-man team destined for Mexico. He worked out with the other gymnasts for 10 weeks before heading to his first Olympics. “The opening ceremonies were amazing and to say the roar of the crowd walking through the tunnel to the Stadium was mesmerizing is an understatement,” Hug recalls.

“Going up to my first event in Mexico, I remember it as if it were yesterday,” he says. “I thought of everything that could go wrong—falling down walking up to the horizontal bar, missing the bar when I jumped up—until my hands were on the bar. Then I knew I was home and I was positive I would do well.” Hug finished 36th—third best on Team USA—but it was the cameradie and participating with other athletes that he remembers enjoying most. “At 16 it was fantastic, I was the youngest male US gymnast—still a record—and I had fun working out and being friends with older people at that age,” he recalls. “I was also happy to miss two months of high school.”

Growing up in southern California, gymnastics was a way of life for Hug. “Muscle Beach in Santa Monica was where we went on Sundays. It was a fantastic community and people did amazing things on the swinging rings—triple backflips, a few guys did quads,” he remembers. There was a flexible

18

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

competition horizontal bar, steel parallel bars and the gymnasts would would walk about 300 yards towards Venice where there was a lawn to tumble on. “We also did flips out of the swing set,” Hug says.”Every Labor Day weekend, there was a competition which very high level gymnasts would come from all over the country for—it was an amazing event hosted by Glenn Sundby.” Sundby was the founder of Modern Gymnast Magazine, the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame and cofounder of the United States Gymnastics Federation. Sundby was how local gymnasts knew what was going on in the national and international world of gymnastics. “Steve Lerner, Marks Davis and Dennis Sherman were the masters of the swinging rings, they were exceptional acrobats. When you were going for a quad flip, spinning around four times about 25 feet in the air landing on sand you had better make it.”

The spring following the Mexico Olympics, Hug returned to Chatsworth High School in Northridge and continued to train and compete. He would soon win his first US Championship taking the all-around title in the one-day competition on April 25—he would go on to win further all-around championships in 1972 and 1974. The following day on April 26, Hug marched back into the Long Beach Arena with other gymnasts from Canada, Yugoslavia, Finland, the United States and Japan for the inaugural World Cup invitational competition. Things looked promising for the talented young athlete who, after his win the day before, was tipped for a high position until he suffered an injury.

A chipped bone in his elbow resulted in him exiting the competition, leaving him to watch the three-time Japanese gold medalist from the Mexico Olympics, Akinori Nakayama, take the All-Around gold.

Following the competition and his recovery, Hug was invited to Japan for the first time. “I was 17 years old, had just won the national championship, and they asked me if I wanted to go train with the best gymnasts in the world—with the Olympic champion,” he says. Thanks to an introduction by fellow gymnast Katsu Yamanaka, Hug was

Hug (third from left) at the NCAA Gymnastic Championships in 1974 (Stanford Athletics)

invited to train at Nihon University, where the head coach was Yukio Endo. Endo was the all-around champion at the 1964 Olympic Games and was by far the most respected person in gymnastics at that time. The assistant coach Takuji Hayata had also won gold medals in the rings and team all-around events at the Tokyo Olympics. Tokyo, top class gymnastics and ASIJ beckoned.

“Being in Japan was a fantastic experience, I feel lucky to have been in that country at that time, when I think a lot of the traditional Japanese values were still alive,” Hug says. He describes training in Japan the greatest experience of his life.

“They were in an entirely different class of gymnastics than what the world had seen, it was like if you were a musician and went to England in the ’60s. There probably will not be another time like it.” The Japanese team’s approach to training was also different. “There are so many basic things that are overlooked in this country and basic swing is one of them. They say do a stutz high, but they don’t say how to it,” Hug told the Modern Gymnast Magazine in 1970.

“You must go fast, but how you do it they don’t say. So I’ve been learning how you do it.” In Japan, Hug found the answers he was looking for, concentrating on perfecting the basics and important body positions. He told ASIJ’s Hanabi that the Japanese gymnasts “have much more technical knowledge about the sport, and they work about twice as hard.” He went on to tell the student newspaper that “the Japanese, on the whole, are much more serious about the competition.”

It was this work ethic, vastly dif ferent to what he’d experienced in the United States, that left an impression on the young athlete. “Every gymnast in the gym I worked out at in Tokyo was very high level, everyone put out 100% every day,” he says. “We were training more than just for ourselves, we were training for the gym and for Japan.

When I went to the airport to come home, everyone from the gym including coaches, the women's team, everybody came to the airport—there were about 70 of them,” he remembers. “Gymnastics was at a completely different and higher level than the rest of the world. I was so fortunate to experience that. Just last year I received an award at a gymnastics reunion event hosted by Kathy and Mike Kelly for bringing that tradition of gymnastics to the US and helping develop it here.”

Gymnastics was Hug’s focus, but as he was still in high school, his education continued at ASIJ. “What I remember about ASIJ was that the students were friendly,” he says. “I remember one teacher telling us things were really going to change when Mao died—he sure was right about that!

I liked the fact that classes were more like what seemed to be a college format, for what I can remember of it.” School was only part of the day for Hug, who was training hard with Japan's elite gymnasts. “I got out of school at 12:30pm three days a week and at 11:15am two days so I wasn't there a lot.

I remember the principal calling me into the office telling me I wouldn't get into college unless I showed I could carry a heavy load my senior year,” Hug recalls. “I guess he didn't

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

19

Hug (third from left) with the United States Gymnastics team at Mexico in 1968

realize making the Olympic team in the 11th grade was a free pass. About a month later walking down the hall he congratulated me. I said for what? It turned out I had been accepted to Stanford and didn't know it.”

Hug would go on to be the most successful male gymnast in Stanford's history at the NCAA Individual Championships setting a school record with 11 All-America awards. Three of those wins coming as consecutive titles in the all-around competition and two in the parallel bars. For Hug himself it was always more about the sport itself rather than accolades.

“When I began competing, many people complimented me on my performance and accomplishments in competition. I still get joy from people appreciating the gymnastics when it is good, but I’m not excited about the awards,” he told The Stanford Daily in 1974.

Soon, Hug's second Olympics beckoned, but the bloom had worn off the competition by the time he reached Germany in 1974. “I felt Munich had really lost the original Olympic spirit of countries sharing cultures and celebrating our time together. It was more commercial and result oriented,” he remembers. “Going into the Olympic Village in Munich it felt very cold with the concrete buildings. Since we were competing on the first day, I didn't even attend the opening ceremonies.” Perhaps that focus gave Hug an edge. “I was in better condition though and did make finals—the first American male gymnast to do so and the only one at that Olympic Games to make finals.” The competition also

20

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

provided Hug an opportunity to reconnect with his old training partners. “I was in the same rotation as my coach from Japan, 1964 Olympic gold medalist Yukio Endo and competing with my friend from Tokyo Eizo Kenmotsu, the 1970 world champion—that was a good two hours to say the least.”

The Olympic spirit of peace was overshadowed by the Munich massacre in the second week of the competition, in which eleven Israeli athletes and coaches and a West German police officer at Olympic village were killed by Black September terrorists. Hug was in Switzerland when he heard the news of what had happened. “I never had an interest in other sports, but I was interested in seeing other countries, so after my completion I traveled around on one of those student train passes, staying in youth hostels around Europe for $3 a day.”

After he stopped competing, Hug taught gymnastics for a few years, opening his own gymnastic school. “Now I am a landscape architect and my Stanford education turned out to be helpful after all as I took their art classes and had a photography instructor who sent me to Ansel Adams’ workshop in Yosemite,” he recalls. Settled in Los Angeles, Hug reflects on his younger days, saying “I really cherish the time I had in Japan and ASIJ.” His early experiences prepared him well for the challenges of adulthood. “Being a competitive athlete taught me that if I could master gymnastics, I could do anything.”

(Photo courtesey of Stanford Athletics) THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

21

If Better is Possible, Good is Not Enough Karen Noll talks with Jennifer Rizzotti ’92 about her long career playing and coaching women's basketball and her role on Team USA at next year's Tokyo Olympics On a winter night in a broom-closet-of-a-gym, Jennifer Rizzotti ‘92 showed up in black and gold to play hoops. She was a fourteen-yearold Mustang in ninth grade. Her teammate, senior Carol Williams ’89, was a fellow point guard. Together they scored 30 points in the first quarter. With three fouls each in the first eight minutes, they were playing at the outer edge of their competitive fire. Dave Ornauer’s eyes sparkle when he remembers how these two athletes elevated the level of play of everyone on the court. ASIJ emerged with a 96-25 victory over CAJ.

22

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

As a journalist for the Depar tment of Defense newspaper Stars and Stripes, Ornauer has watched hundreds of high school athletes every year for the past 38 years. He makes it clear that Jennifer Rizzotti was a rare star.

Sitting at well-worn wooden table in the Mustang’s book locker room, Ornauer begins with the date and the weather—March 18, 1989. Tokyo was in the midst of a cold snap, and a bad flu was going around. Varsity girls’ basketball coach Dennis Staples was tucked in bed at home with a high fever. JV Coach

(Ned Dishman/NBAE/Getty Images) THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

23

Sherry Herssig took the team up the long hill past the Chuo Line to Higashi-Kurume for the first league game of the season. The girls would be playing in Christian Academy Japan’s notorious old barn gym that, according to some basketball fans, was like a dark broom closet. You couldn’t run a full-court press; you couldn’t run a fast break; you couldn’t throw a full-court pass. Ornauer claims that “if you drove for a layup, you drove right through the gym doors and into the great outdoors.”

He continues rattling off numbers from that first time he got to watch Rizzotti play—she had 18 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, 7 assists. But he knows that Rizzotti’s career stats as a player and a coach will make their own statements about her talent. He wants to say something about her character, her influence on others, her spirit.

“Jennifer was a gentle soul off the court, but a tiger—a fierce beast!—on the court. It was intimidating how fierce, how beastly she could be,” he recalls. In a post game interview that night, Rizzotti was completely unaware how amazing she was.

He asked questions about her commanding performance; she talked about the ten turnovers that could have been avoided.

“If better was possible, good was not enough,” Ornauer declares about Rizzotti’s attitude toward everything.

Ornauer followed Rizzotti’s career when she returned to Connecticut and played high school then college ball. He has the storyteller’s gift of making a game between the CAJ Knights and the ASIJ Mustangs sound as critically important as the epic 1995 NCAA Championship matchup at The Final Four between the UConn Huskies and the Tennessee Volunteers. He is right to see them both as pivotal. Jennifer Rizzotti herself credits the intensely competitive sports experiences she had at ASIJ with the beginnings of her identity as an exceptional athlete. The big game needs the little game, which needs an even littler game.

The arena that staged the birth of UConn’s magic was quite a bit bigger than the CAJ barn gym. It had a seating capacity of about 20,000 and TV viewership of about three million. In the Minneapolis Target Center you could run a full-court press, and you could drive for a layup, which is exactly what Rizzotti did, famously. Her timely steal and fast break layup is considered by some to be a history-making moment for women’s college basketball.

The Huskies were down by nine points against the Volunteers late in the fourth quarter and plagued by fouls. Rizzotti wasn’t going to let this game slip. She wasn’t going to let people say they couldn’t beat mighty Tennessee without a home court advantage. Rizzotti saw an opening, stole the ball and drove for a layup. The game’s momentum changed. Rizzotti’s tiger spirit elevated the play of everybody on the court. Rebecca Lobo matched it. Jamelle Elliot matched it. The big game needed all of the little games. And in a gigantic way, this

24

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ASIJ Mustang carried her black and gold heart to an epic ESPN moment. The Huskies won 70-64. Rizzotti had helped lead the University of Connecticut to an undefeated season and its first of what has become eleven NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Titles, more than any other women’s Divison I basketball program in NCAA history.

Amidst a barrage of media attention after that win, Ornauer called Rizzotti’s dad to see if she might give him an interview for the Stars and Stripes. “By this point, she was a national sports star whose face was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. I felt grateful for the chance to ask a few questions. But when I got her on the phone, she asked me more questions than I asked her! She wanted to know about the Mustangs and their Far East victory in 1992. She wanted to hear about Kathy Greig ’94 who won tournament MVP that year. You know I don’t think I have ever seen Jennifer smile on a court, but it is crystal clear that she values friends, teammates, unity.”

Rizzotti came to Tokyo with her family in 1985. She made the trip to school every day with her brother Thomas ’91, her brother Gregory ’95 and her sister Candace ’99. Sixthgrade counselor and coach Jeremy Durfee (FF ’85–’93) helped connect her to the sports teams she was interested in: soccer, basketball, baseball, and volleyball. At that time, both soccer and baseball were not offered for girls, so she played with the boys, and that was when Rizzotti, began to notice for the first time that middle school boys did not like girls being on their teams, especially a girl who was really good. She had always played sports with her brothers when she was little and thought no one cared she was a girl. But when she played baseball with the boys, she got hit by a lot of pitches. And when she played soccer, the boys stopped passing to her after she had scored too many goals. Coach Durfee tells a story about a co-ed basketball game at the Tokyo American Club when Rizzotti was in sixth grade. At tip-off a boy said to her, “I’m going to kick your ass today” so she scored 50 points and held the boy she was guarding to 2 points. “A good lesson for the boy,” says Durfee.

By ninth grade, it seems the boys had figured out that she was a key asset. Her high school JV soccer coach Dan Gogerty remembers, “Jennifer played well all season, and she was usually the only girl on the field—but she earned the respect of all, her teammates and our opponents. I still think of her as the most competitive player—male or female—I ever coached.”

Like Ornauer, Gogerty also has crisp memories from the first time he saw Rizzotti in a game. It was a busy day on the Chofu campus because of the winter fund-raising festival. A big crowd was watching on the main field. “She was aggressive and focused, and by halftime, she had scored two goals," he recalls. "I subbed her out late in the game to let everyone get some action, and she just about kicked me in the shins because she wanted to stay in.”

Rizzotti coaching during a heated game (Photo courtesy of GW Athletics) THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

25

Rizzotti and the HS basketball team in ’89 (front, third from left)

Coach Staples says of Rizzotti, “Her quickness was her most obvious asset in basketball, but just as importantly she had the tenacity and drive to improve that elite athletes almost always have.” And in what seems like a paradox for superstars, he adds, “In all the time I coached Jennifer she never exhibited an ounce of ego. She was as good a person as she was an athlete.”

Back at New Fairfield High School in Connecticut, Rizzotti spent three years focused on basketball, leading her team to two state titles. She was recruited by the legendary coach Gene Auriemma and played at the University of Connecticut. After college, she played eight years of professional basketball at a time when the league was fighting for legitimacy. Tennis and golf were career options for women, but no team sport had made it work. Soccer was still a decade away. Ice hockey would need nearly two decades. But Rizzotti helped establish the roots of the WNBA. Other UConn Huskies teammates did the same: Rebecca Lobo, Nykesha Sales, Sue Bird, Maya Moore.

Now Coach Rizzotti is nurturing the next generation of great players. After seventeen years as head coach of the Hawks at the University of Hartford, she moved to Washington D.C. to take on the head coach job for the George Washington Colonials. She has also coached various age groups of the USA national teams, and next summer will be an assistant to head coach Dawn Staley for the 2020 Olympic team.

“Personally it is pretty awesome for me to think that I can go back to Tokyo—this place where I grew up and have so many wonderful, personal memories, and where my athletic career really got going. I am honored and proud to be a part of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.” Rizzotti tries to explain the magic attraction of the Olympic games. “There’s nothing better than an Olympic gold medal. We have a couple of players who might be coming back for their fifth Olympics. That demonstrates how important it is to be a part of this experience.”

26

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Rizzotti and the HS JV soccer team in ’89 (back, fourth from left)

It may look to some like Team USA basketball just shows up and wins every game, but Coach Rizzotti argues that “it is really, really hard to look that good and keep winning.”

She speaks with a healthy competitive anxiety about strong teams from Belgium, France and Spain. “Believe me, we coaches lose sleep over Australia.”

In 2016 Rizzotti was inducted into the CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) Hall of Fame.

CoSIDA is best known for the NCAA honor called Academic All-American given to athletes who are strong students.

The organization also recognizes lifetime achievement.

In receiving the distinction, she was quoted, “I credit my experiences as a college athlete for helping me understand the qualities necessary to succeed in life.” When asked what those qualities are, there was no hesitation in her answer.

These qualities are her daily oxygen.

“Strong work ethic—Nobody is good at sports unless they work at it. It doesn’t matter how talented you are, there has to be a level of grit and determination that goes into being good. Handling adversity—That is probably one of the biggest lessons I teach my players. Nothing in life always goes your way. Life isn’t fair. Sports isn’t fair. And that’s okay. A true test of your character happens when things don’t go your way and you have to show the world how you have chosen to handle it. Working with others—Relationships teach essential lessons of give and take. Team players must learn how to lead others and how to rely on others. Communication—I care a lot about how teammates talk to each other, listen to each other, respect each other. I help them negotiate their differences, their backgrounds, their likes and dislikes.”

After her solid list, she reflected with a bit more sprawl on the way kids develop these qualities over time. “I don’t think you know all this when you are going through it in middle and high school. It takes a while. You play sports when you’re young because you love it, or because your parents signed

Rizzotti with the US basketball team (Chris Marion Sr/NBAE/Getty Images)

you up, or because your siblings and friends are doing it.

I didn't think what I was learning in sports would take me further in life than anything else I could have learned in the classroom. The coaches and the teachers in your life that are best equipped to help you with what goes on outside the classroom—they are doing you a bigger service than teaching you a mathematical equation or how to write an essay. You could be a really, really good student, but if you are oblivious to all those other things that go into being a successful person, you have a much smaller chance of leaving school ready for the real world.”

Given recent criminal scandals in college sports which include the Larry Nassar sexual assault crimes and the Operation Varsity Blues admissions bribery crimes, Rizzotti’s job includes building trust with athletes and families who might be deeply skeptical of the adults leading college sports programs. Sometimes she wishes athletes and parents would be more skeptical when they are choosing where to go. While she puts a tremendous amount of pressure on herself to live up to the expectations of somebody else’s parents, she also knows there are coaches in all sports that

prioritize winning over relationships. “Actually you can win and do things the right way,” she laughs as if this basic formula has evaded too many. Rizzotti coaches the way she was coached. Be ethical. Have integrity. Tell the truth. Her statements about these simple principles do not ring like platitudes. She understands the gravity of recruiting kids when they are still fourteen years old. She wants families to know, “I’m real. I’m honest. I will build relationships before I offer scholarships. What I tell you now is the truth you will live when you play with me. I don’t promise playing time.

I promise that my players will be well taken care of.” She sighs when she emphasizes, “Feeling safe and cared-for is so much more important than playing well.”

She is excited to bring her husband, Bill Sullivan, and her two sons, Holden and Connor, to the old neighborhood haunts near Shinjuku and to share a ride with them on the Chuo Line out to ASIJ’s Chofu campus for a visit. From her high school debut in a cold Tokyo gym the size of a broom closet to the impressive Olympic Stadium which features wood collected from all of Japan’s 47 prefectures, Rizzotti will bring her exceptional career in basketball full circle.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

27

Paralympic Undokai Eighth-graders explore para-sports during Tokyo Culture Days

28

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

With next year’s Paralympics fast approaching, middle school students recently had the opportunity to learn about some of the sports that will be played at the games when the Nippon Foundation Paralympic Support Center visited campus. Part of the middle school’s Tokyo Culture Days Program, which is designed to connect students with the people, communities and cultures of Japan, the Paralympic Undokai, or sports day, saw eighth-graders get a hands-on taste of the sports. Over the course of two days, every student had the opportunity to experience sitting volleyball, wheelchair portball and the

wheelchair team relay. Thanks to the efforts of the Japan Center and generous support from the PTA, students had an opportunity to understand and empathise with differentlyabled athletes and the Paralympic movement.

Former wheelchair basketball player and current project leader of Paralympic Support Center’s Promotional and Strategy Department, Yusuke Ibuki (Bukki) opened the ceremony, sharing his experience of completing in the United States, his passions and life work of inclusivity in para-sports.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

29

Students were challenged to communicate effectively without the ability to see in an ice-breaker activity where students had to categorize themselves by the seasons in which they were born. Bukki explained how sighted people rely on their ability to see for 80% of the information taken in.

Bukki wowed students with expert wheelchair basketball skills. Aya Burpee commented, “My takeaway from this was that Paralympic sports involve as much athleticism as Olympic sports and you need certain skill sets that are different from regular Olympic sports.�

30

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Teams faced off in a sitting volleyball tournament. Students discovered the difficulties of the sport without the use of their legs; serving from a sitting position and reaching for the ball

In the portball game, students had the rare opportunity to experience using an authentic, athlete approved, sports wheelchair. In a fast-paced game, students scored points transporting the ball across the court to their respective goal-person, whilst avoiding their opponents.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

31

32

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Borderless Learning Early Learning Center Director Christy Carrillo reveals how our kindergartners explored the interactive digital art museum teamLab Borderless

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

33

Imagine a colorful interactive world where your movements and actions change the environment around you. A place where you can draw a sea creature and see it come to life on the wall or create a lizard that moves around the floor.

A space filled with color, light and laughter. That place is teamLab’s Borderless and at the end of the school year in May, our kindergarten classes were invited by the Mori building to be their guests at the digital art museum.

When the children were inside, exploring each area, it really came to life with their imagination. There are areas where they were physically involved in altering and engaging with their environment. There were areas where the environment was responsive to the children as they moved, touched and played. They were also able to see their influence on an environment.

One of the things that made the museum so magical for our children was how physically active and responsive it was. One area they enjoyed was the slide. The children were able to physically engage in a process of moving things, affecting things but all the while, having fun as they slid

34

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

down the slide. Another popular area was the trampoline.

With multiple jumps the black hole would get bigger and planets and space things would move around for them. The balloon room was another area that was really engaging for the kids because as they went through, things would move in response to their own motion and in response to other children’s movements. They were able to touch, push, pull and see what that response was. The application to real life is that you never act on your own. Anything that you do will have an impact and things other people do will have an impact on you and so, through the museum experiences, they were able to experiment and play with that in a very fun way but it’s still a learning that will stay with them for a long time.

At this stage in their development, children learn through physical response, physical reaction and so another area which they found very engaging was the hanging swing area.

It was almost like an obstacle course. Developmentally it tested not only their balance but also their executive function skills as they worked through how they wanted to negotiate the different steps and the directions that they could take.

One room that really sparked the children's imagination was a room that was hidden off the balloon room. There was a narrow doorway to go in and as we walked in the children started to notice that it was a full environment with its own community. There were animated little creatures walking along the perimeter of the room and with no direction the children started following, watching and noticing what they were doing. Then the children started to pick up different objects that were available to them, ladders, mushrooms, trees and clouds and place these in different areas. When they did that they were able to recognise what impact that had on this community and on the environment. I could see the questions forming in their mind as they, for example, placed a ladder and notice that the little creatures would go up the ladder. And then the question of where are these creatures going to go? And there were no rules, so they could put a cloud, a tree, a mushroom and depending on what they placed

there, the creatures had different responses. So through a process of experimentation and then conversation and collaboration, groups of children started to come together to create communities and when the communities got too big, you started to notice the children would then create an alternative path for these little creatures. So again, a ladder would come down or a tree and they started creating, recreating, moving. What that did for the children was help them realise how they impact the world around them and it helped them to form questions or hypothesis, act on those, test them and then move onto their next hypothesis. It was extremely response, very creative as an environment and for the children, very inspiring and engaging.

We’d really like to thank the Mori building for giving our children this incredible, eye opening experience. It really brought their learning and sense of curiosity to life.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

35

36

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Safeguarding: The Next Level Monica Clear explores the progress ASIJ has made in safeguarding and what it means to have received Level Two Certification from Keeping Children Safe

On May 31, 2019, a long-awaited email arrived in my inbox from the organization, Keeping Children Safe (KCS). This email shared the results of an external audit performed in the month by the child protection capacitybuilding organization based in the United Kingdom. If ASIJ passed the audit, the school would be awarded a Level Two Certification in recognition of high standards of child protection policies and implementation—an achievement that had been a Board-directed goal for

the school since 2015. This we knew. What we didn’t know was that Level Two had never been successfully obtained previously by any school or organization working with KCS. Throughout the four-day audit visit in mid-May, Vijay Baskar from KCS reviewed numerous documents and met with a number of community stakeholders. Focus groups were held with students from grades 3-12, members

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

37

The Council of International Schools (CIS) visited ASIJ in January to speak to faculty about safeguarding

of the Leadership Team and Board of Directors, parents from all four school divisions, individual department heads from Communications to Transportation, and members of the Safeguarding Task Force that had been collaboratively working towards the goal of achieving Level Two for over three years.

38

creating and implementing new policies and practices, it was time for an assessment and either result would help move us forward.

The standards assessed during the audit included: Setting Policy, Organizing Staff, Planning and Implementing, and Monitoring and Reviewing. As Safeguarding Coordinator, it was my role to facilitate this effort. During his visit, Vijay was able to see concrete examples of the widespread training program we’d put in place over the previous years, a shared understanding of personal safety in the student body and the reporting structures we’d developed.

On May 31, with a deep breath and one click, I opened the message from KCS and read the word, “Congratulations!” ASIJ had successfully passed Level Two Certification becoming the first organization working with KCS to do so. The letter acknowledged that ASIJ has “developed a child safeguarding framework that, when implemented, protects children from harm and if a child safeguarding incident should occur, you have the appropriate response mechanisms in place…” In particular, the audit report made mention of how ASIJ had embedded a culture of safeguarding within the school’s vision, priorities, and whole-school operations.

To achieve the certification would mean the school had successfully implemented a strong safety net for students; falling short of the certification would result in a roadmap for the work that is still to be done. After several years of

Although this has been a large achievement in the school’s overall commitment to safeguarding, the work is never truly done. The Safeguarding Task Force continues to set goals towards greater transparency, tighter collaboration when

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ASIJ is helping other schools develop their safeguarding programs by hosting various personal development opportunities on campus

Monica teaches parents about safeguarding practices

concerns arise and additional shared understandings of the school’s approach to issues of abuse and harm to children.

Likewise, an important objective of this work is to embrace ASIJ’s leadership role in our local community and share our resources, successes and lessonslearned with other international schools in the greater Tokyo region and beyond.

To this aim, in January 2019, ASIJ hosted a four-day child protection conference organized by the Council of International Schools (CIS), attended by 150 educators and administrators from everywhere from Angola to China.

Workshops included introductory and deep-dive topics such as Managing a Safeguarding Allegation, Peer-on-Peer Abuse, and Comprehensive Sexuality Education. Twenty-seven faculty and administrators from ASIJ participated in the conference and members of our Board of Trustees attended a special session on Trustee Safeguarding Training.

changes in Japanese law. At the end of the day, it should not matter what school a child attends; all children deserve Level Two quality of safety at their learning institution so they can safely thrive and develop to their full potential.

ASIJ is working to provide that model and be a resource for change in our community and the school remains committed to a prevention, response, and best practice model of safeguarding in schools.

A Tokyo Professional Learning Community (PLC) for individuals who ser ve as Safeguarding Leads at their school was born out of this conference, and the group continues to grow beyond its current membership of 30 professionals. ASIJ recently hosted the PLC and invited an attorney specializing in children’s rights law to discuss recent

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

39

Lessons From Space Serena Landers ’20 and Marine Savoure ’21 explore the lessons learned by NASA engineer Bobak Ferdowsi ’97 throughout his life and career during his visit to ASIJ

“Why do we exist? Why is earth so full of life? A lot of the work that we do at NASA and the work in particular that I'm working on now is to help us understand what's going on in our own planet.” This is what drives Bobak Ferdowsi ’97 in his work at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab as a systems engineer.

Ferdowsi, who spoke at ASIJ’s Space Conference in May 2019, was just 24 when he first started working on NASA’s Curiosity Rover mission to Mars. Nine years later, the rover successfully landed on the Red Planet. For Ferdowsi, the beauty of his work lies in its potential to “help humanity create solutions that address the problems and the challenges of our times.” Ferdowsi finds that space exploration puts things into perspective: “it helps us realize that there is so much more between shared between us than there are differences.”

40

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Though Ferdowsi now sees his purpose clearly, he didn’t grow up aiming to be an engineer. At most, his interest in space consisted of a fascination for science fiction. “I grew up on science fiction,” he says. “It planted a couple of seeds.”

It was only in high school that Ferdowsi became seriously interested in science, inspired by his chemistry teacher, Mr Chambers (FF ’89–11. By conveying his excitement and interest in science, Chambers showed Ferdowsi that “this is something that is worth being excited about.”

Ultimately, Ferdowsi realized that “science was a place that I really want to pursue”, though the road ahead would still have twists and turns. Initially majoring in physics, Ferdowsi soon realized that this wasn’t quite right for him.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

41

Marine and Serena interviewing Bobak for the article

Despite having “experimentally made a mistake,” Ferdowsi highlights what he learned from it: “What I did enjoy from that experience was I really liked trying to figure out how to solve a problem, building up some hardware to then address that issue.” This, alongside a recent successful NASA rover mission to Mars, led him to go into aerospace engineering, where his trial and error approach to life would continue to serve him.

Ever since his bicycling accidents as a child, from which he learned to inflate his tires and wear a helmet, Ferdowsi has seen failure as a learning experience. “There will always be failures, but how we address those and how we learn from them is really how we keep getting better and better at our jobs or our lives.” In high-risk environments like NASA, it becomes especially important to learn from failure. The question, Ferdowsi states, is “How do you make mistakes on Earth before you launch people into space. How can I fail when it doesn't cost me something, versus fail when something important is on the line?” As an engineer, failure represents a crucial part of Ferdowsi’s job. He admits that testing failure on earth and adapting to failure in space are his favorite parts of the project. “It's this awesome opportunity to play detective.”

42

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Ferdowsi has now played “detective” on multiple NASA missions. He previously worked on the Curiosity Rover mission, which aimed to determine whether there is or has been life on Mars. It was a groundbreaking mission, using new techniques and processes for landing and holding a vast array of scientific instruments designed to probe the Red Planet. Now, he’s preparing for another launch, currently “finishing the design, where we're building hardware, where we're delivering software,” in preparation for the goal of launching in January 2022. In parallel, his team is also working with India, “delivering the spacecraft hardware to India and integrating with the Indian spacecraft.”

Though Ferdowsi tends to prefer the hands-on testing to the mission-planning discussions and spacecraft design process, every step is important. He highlights that this is why a variety of individuals with differing strengths and interests is a necessity at NASA. From lawyers to artists, and accountants to storytellers, there are many professions within the team: “I think all of that comes together,” he says.

The collaboration between all the moving parts “makes the whole thing work very well.” Ferdowsi believes “we’ve sort of moved past the point of where you’re going to have that lone, great scientist or engineer,” and that “the next

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

43

Bobak and fellow guest presenters pose for a photo with Space Club members

generation of discoveries and advances are going to come as a result of people working together.” When working with many individuals, “the ability to understand different perspectives and to bring different perspectives to the table is extremely valuable.” Ferdowsi gives the example of the discussion between scientists and engineers between the desire to conduct as many experiments as possible “versus what’s safe for the spacecraft from an engineering perspective.” “Consensus-building”, as he calls it, is vital on all levels in order to integrate multiple points of view into a single solution that works for everyone.

Having this open mindset and ability to navigate different viewpoints is becoming increasingly important as the space community moves “towards more international collaboration,” Ferdowsi notes that his current project in collaboration with India was fulfilling and “a very, very different experience than working just within NASA.” He believes that his time at ASIJ helped foster his multiculturalist and collaborative mindset. He notes that learning in the ASIJ environment, where there are many perspectives and beliefs, challenged him to understand others’ frameworks: “I think you learn to consensus-build naturally here at ASIJ.”

44

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Now Ferdowsi is giving back to his community. In May of 2019, Ferdowsi returned to ASIJ to speak at the second annual Space Conference. Organized by the students of the High School Space Club, the conference had many ASIJ students, parents and faculty in attendance, as well as students from several other schools. This Space Conference was generously funded by current parent Ted Tawara and the PTA, which sponsored Ferdowsi’s visit to ASIJ. Sakiko Miyazaki ’20, head leader of the Space Club and organization team for the conference, says that “as the Space Club, our mission is to spread our passion for space exploration throughout the community. With the Space Club Conference, we aim to show students the boundless opportunities space holds.”

Ferdowsi spoke on the importance of a positive mindset towards failure, encouraging students to follow their interests and not be deterred by failure. “It was so inspirational to see a former ASIJ student’s journey in pursuing his passion for space,” says Miyazaki. Just like Mr Chamber’s approach to science inspired Ferdowsi, perhaps one of the members in the audience has been in turn inspired by Ferdowsi’s passion. A new wave of future change-makers and space explorers is on its way.

FUNDRAISING UPDATE 18–19 Other ¥3,600,265

Strength & Courage Award ¥343,873

Unrestricted ¥62,181,388

ASIJ Fund 0

Other ¥20 mil¥3,600,265 ¥30 mil

¥10 mil

Strength & Courage Award ¥343,873

¥40 mil

¥50 mil

¥60 mil

Unrestricted ¥62,181,388 Total Raised ¥66,125,526 0

¥10 mil

¥20 mil

¥30 mil

Giving by Constituency

¥40 mil

¥50 mil

¥60 mil

ALUMNI PARENTS 121

CURRENT PARENTS 154

FACULTY/STAFF 86 CURRENT & FORMER

FRIENDS 8 CURRENT PARENTS 154

ALUMNI PARENTS 121

ALUMNI 229

FACULTY/STAFF 86 CURRENT & FORMER

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

45

Dear ASIJ Community, Thank you! The ASIJ Fund achieved outstanding results last year and your gifts are the reason.

Your generosity yielded a significant increase in the total yen/dollar contributions from our entire community. New initiatives such as Giving Tuesday and matching gifts for new donors, increased participation across our generous community.

Many of you are named on the following pages for your contributions to the ASIJ Fund, which go to support the School’s operating budget and the many programs which help ASIJ be a defining moment in the lives of our students. Funds raised last year helped support the development of our SEL curriculum (social and emotional learning), us secure additional counselors in our elementary and high school programs, create opportunities for students to interact with visiting authors and make professional development opportunities available for faculty. Students are better prepared for the future through your philanthropic contributions which directly impact their experience at ASIJ. Your gifts of time, talent and treasure have blended together to create a powerful impact that enriches our school community and accelerates our efforts to be an outstanding educational institution. Your willingness to donate is a testament to your passion for ASIJ and the impact the school has on your lives. With your continued support, we can strive to provide the outstanding educational experience needed by today’s students and the students of the future.

This year we are extremely grateful for the expansion of our Endowment Fund through a ¥100 million commitment from the ASIJ PTA. We thank the PTA for spotlighting the need to grow our endowment, and we look forward to an increased focus of this area in the future.

Your efforts to give each and every year is greatly appreciated. Each of your gifts helps us go further.

Warmest regards,

Mary Margaret Mallat Interim Director of Advancement

46

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Claire Lonergan Assistant Director of Development and Alumni Relations

From left to right: Bob Noddin, Chair of ASIJ’s Board of Directors and Trustees, current and former PTA Presidents: Rangana Abdulla, Susan Seltzer, Lenore Reese, Anush Balian, Mary Margaret Mallat, current Interim Director of Advancement, and Head of School Jim Hardin.

ASIJ Announces ¥100 Million Endowment Gift On May 23, ASIJ received a gift of ¥100 million to its endowment from the PTA. The gift was announced at the annual donor reception held at Meiji Kinenkan, with several former PTA Presidents in attendance. “This donation is the result of thousands of volunteer hours and ASIJ’s PTA is one of the most supportive of any school I have experienced,” Jim Hardin, Head of School, stated in his remarks. "The PTA is an integral part of the ASIJ community and this gift will provide a significant boost to ASIJ’s finances," he continued.

ASIJ is currently looking to build its endowment through outreach to alumni, corporations, and parents, with the objective of reducing ASIJ’s dependence on tuition. “Building our endowment is one of ASIJ’s most important strategic objectives over the next few years, I am grateful for the PTA’s leadership in kick-starting this effort,” said Bob Noddin, Chair of ASIJ’s Board of Directors and Trustees.

If you are interested in making a gift to the endowment, please contact the Advancement Office at donate@asij.ac.jp or see the enclosed gift envelope.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

47

GIFT CLUB MEMBERS 1902 Society

Courtyard Circle

Headmaster’s Circle

Anonymous Caldwell, Dale & Megumi Cannon, Alan & Kitakado, Fuyumi Ciganer Albeniz, Archibald & Yoko Endo, Kristy ’01 & Theil, Jules Folsom, Richard & Qian Kawakami, Junpei & Mai Mallat, Mary Margaret & Deck, David Nakano, Akinori & Mariko Noddin, Robert & Janette Park, Chiman & Seo, Alice Pierce, Peter & Sare, Steven Regent, Cristopher & Heidi Ryu, Roy ’77 Sasanuma, Catherine & Taisuke Seltzer, Susan & Theodore Tahara, Kunio & Eriko Talbot, Jay & Yuki Tsujiguchi, Hironobu & Maki Uruma, Fred & Ryoko Zee, Jinly ’90

Brewer, Brady & Darcy Farrell, Tiffany & Moorefield, John Fujii, Daniel ’82 & Yuki Fujishima, Julie ’84 Harada, Mary ’81 & Peterson, Greg Hori, Naohiro & Kumi Kasamatsu, David Jun & Rika Kraft, Joseph & Miwa Lee, David ’86 & Kaori Murakami, Yumiko & Moses, Todd Neureiter, Kirk & Mariko Ohashi, Hiromasa & Momoko Platek, Nir Rekate, Jason & Anna Semaya, David & Masako Shah, Sachin & Rajul Sowder, Stuart & Yuson, Rusty Takamiya, Toshiro & Shino

Anonymous (2) Anton, Yuriko ’84 & Philip Bernier, Jeffrey & Seiko Black, Jerry & Sayuri Chuang, Peter & Harumi D’Attanasio, Paul & Karen Dan, Basilius & Chieko Daver, Roxana & Massion, Peter Dennis, Thurman Downs, Vicky Edmunds, Eric & Misa Epstein, Jonathan & Liu Fujii, Dave ’83 & Makiko Furuta, Taketora & Saiko Greenberg, Steven & ObuchiGreenberg, Mika Hagerty, William & Chrissy Hashimoto, Yutaka & Hisae Hatakeyama, Yasu & Maki Higa, Ernie ’70 & Aya Imai, Eijiro & Hiromi Keyes, Justin & Sasaki, Mai Kochhar, Rakesh & Priti Lane, Nicholas & Holly Lee, Michael & Ami Mito, Koichiro & Kiyomi Mizuno, Toshizumi & Junko Muir, Jim & Kanai, Miwa Nakamura, Mariko & Hiro Nakashima, Amane & Chizuru Nishimi, Tetsuya ’94 & Kiyoko O’Donovan, Erin & Timothy O’Shea, Stephen & Saigusa O’Shea, Kie Okada, Hikaru & Yoshiko Okamoto, Tet ’98 & Eri Oshima, Robert ’68 Piez, Catherine ’82 & Whatford, Mark Porté, Thierry & Tashiro-Porté, Yasko Rahman, Farida ’68 Reese, Lenore & Isenberg, Joshua Reilly, Kenneth & Debbie Sakemi, Takeshi & Mie Salathé, Gregory & Regina Schultz, Mark & Disa Tawara, Ted & Lia Zahedi, Ardeshir

¥1,000,000—¥4,999,999

Donations listed here were made between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2019.

48

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

¥500,000—¥999,999

¥200,000—¥499,999

Black and Gold League ¥100,000—¥199,999

Anonymous Becchetti, James & Okada, Kyoko Boatwright, David ’73 Cashell, Kieron & Haga, Kotoha Cheung, Jasper & Takako Chitani, Yinsei ’68 & Yoshio DiCicco, Daniel ’89 & Yuko Ehrenkranz, Andra ’83 & John Fink, James & Mika Fukikoshi, Akihiro & Tomoko Fukuma, Lalaka ’93 Guillot, Frank ’65 & Ann Hardin, Jim & Marti Hashimoto, Takeshi Hassan, Matthew & Ojima, Mari Hirata, Hideo & Tomoko Holjo, Mats & Hiroe Ito, Masatoshi & Kumi Jain, Raj & Kang, Claire Kagimoto, Tadahisa & Eve Kamano, Hiroyuki & Harumi Kawada, Susan & Tadahiro Kindred, Jonathan & Sachiko Knode, Stephen ’86 & Sharon Kobayashi, Terumi & Takashi Kohler, Barbara & Skorski, Joseph Koike, Junji & Aya Kozloski, Richard & Laura Kuwana, Yumi ’82 & Eiichiro Kwan, Sora & Jason Latimore, Timothy & Chieko Ledbetter, Phaedra ’81 & Mark Ma, Sam & Quan, Veronica Majid, Nasir & Chie Marini, Buddy ’85 & Hitomi Masayama, Hiroshi & Hiroko Matsudaira, Aki & Koichi Matsui Koll, Kathy & Koll, Jesper Mentzas, Spyro Mera, Yuhka ’81 Miller, Tony & Melin, Cecilia Min, Jungsuk & Sohn, Stella Mohamed, Iku & Emi Morgenstern, Frederick ’83 & Kendra Mukherjee, Jaya & Mukhopadhyay, Abhijit Multz, Jeffrey & Susan Nakamura, Yoichi & Sakiko Nelson, Brian ’85

Nelson, Laurie & Michael Nishida, David & Tina ’85 Nishimura, Hiroyuki & Etsuko Ogawa, Andy ’90 & Makoto Okuno, Marcus & Kazuko Plum, John & Mimi Possman, John & Shoko Quinn, Willie ’88 & Laurie Schmelzeis, Joseph ’80 Sharp, Robert ’87 Shirakawa, Kotoe ’03 Silver, Nicholas & Yumiko Slattery, Ronald & Toshiko Smith, Charles & Emi Sumida, Shiori ’99 Takada, Yuko Takai, Kota & Megumi Tanaka, Richard ’67 & Catherine Tsukahira, Peggy ’65 & Norris, Charles Tsusaka, Miki & Jun Whitehead, Charles ’79 & Debbie Whitson, Thomas & Misty Xu, Yeren & Wang, Fan Yamasaki, Arata (Paul) & Afifah Yoshida, Kumiko

Mustangs Club ¥50,000—¥99,999

Abdulla, Rangana & Mikaal Armstrong, Peter ’52 Ausman, William ’57 Bastick, Lisa ’82 Besson, Thomas & Andriani, Ruri Cheng, Jill ’63 & Hung Chuchro, Katherine & Douglas Conrad, Andrew & Chitose Cromwell, Penny ’67 Dornoff, Jeffrey & Deanne Fisher, Michael ’88 Fitzpatrick, Tod ’63 Haines, David ’64 & Karen Hanada, Kozo & Jitsuko Hattori, Enna ’11 Hattori, Hitomi ’83 & Seikou Hattori, Mina ’15 Hiramoto, Hideyuki & ShiobaraHiramoto, Fumiko Igarashi, Koji & Mie Kawasaki, Lauren & Tatsuo Lury, Richard ’65 & Gemma Marini, Nina ’88 Martino, Bill ’63 & Betsy Matsumoto, Tomoaki & Yumiko Matsumoto, Toyokazu & Naomi Matsuo, Taro & Lee Matsuo, Yuki Meyer, Joseph & Minako Nagata, Paul ’74 & Susan Nakayama, Tetsu ’84 & Ayumi Nelson, Michael & Sabina O’Brien, Jeffrey & Willcut, Deborah Oline, Mark ’78 & Rebecca Prairie, Ginny & Shane Raineri, Kim & Heather Schlichting, Richard & Cynthia Silecchia, Thomas & Tate, Saori Taffel, Max ’04 Turner, Sally ’66 Upadhyay, Bhupesh & Sajala Versteeg, David & Jennifer Witt, Gene & Janet Yomine, Daniel ’62 & Julia Yoshida-Smith, Jenni ’91

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

49

DECADE CLUBS Quadruple Decade Club

Double Decade Club

Downs, Vicky Glazier, Kenneth ’67 Nielsen, Jeannette ’59 Shimizu, George ’39

Bruzek, Patricia & Ken Chitani, Yinsei ’68 & Yoshio Coopat, Tom & Cheryle Cooper, Peter & Pamela Duke, Susan ’83 Ewart, Emilie ’97 & Jake Fattal, Leon ’57 & Suzanne Francischetti, Mark ’72 Fujishima, Julie ’84 Honamon, Andrew ’77 Huo, Eugene ’96 Huo, Jeffrey ’94 Jones-Morton, Pamela (PhD) Kidder, Paul ’76 & Terry Kobayashi, Albert ’42 & Betty Mera, Yuhka ’81 Meyer, Mary ’65 Morgenstern, Frederick ’83 & Kendra Pierce, Lucia ’68 Plum, John & Mimi Porté, Thierry & Tashiro-Porté, Yasko Sanders, Michael ’87 & Jun Squier, Mid & Carol Stokes, Paul & Rose Tunis, Jeffrey Vehanen, Martin ’61 Wakat, Barbi ’88

Triple Decade Club Adams, Jim & Nancy Blizzard, Jan ’71 & Craig Boatwright, David ’73 Burkart, Ned ’48 & Pauline Carlin, Christopher & Donna Cohen, Frederick ’69 & Topper-Cohen, Barbara Crandall, Les & Aiko Haines, Andrew ’60 & Lisa Harnik, Peter ’69 & Yoko Huskins, Shirley James, Larry & Sharon Kemmerer, Ruthli & Walter Leybold, Sandra ’73 & Dennis Livingston, Jerry ’81 & Bonnie Lund, Andy ’81 & Denise Magnuson, Jody ’73 & Clark McCoy, William ’59 & Lynne McVeigh, Rod ’70 & Rebecca Moss, Carolyn ’73 & Hawkins, Daniel Nicol, Joanna ’52 Pietraszek, Henry & Margaret Schaffer, Sally ’76 Walsh, Robert ’81

Decade Club Berkove, Ethan ’86 & Kyra Bernier, Jeffrey & Seiko Cannon, Alan & Kitakado, Fuyumi Ehrenkranz, Andra ’83 & John Greig, Katherine ’94 Harte, Esther Hatakeyama, Yasu & Maki Hayase, John ’85 & Allison Kamano, Hiroyuki & Harumi Kuroda, Mitzi ’77 & Elledge, Stephen Martino, William ’63 & Betsy Meller, Louise ’63 & Lukowski, Jay Miller, Scott & Mary Nagata, Paul ’74 & Susan Nishida, David & Tina ’85 Piez, Catherine ’82 & Whatford, Mark Pontius, Pamela ’97 & Rankin, Greg Schlichting, Richard & Cynthia Seltzer, Susan & Theodore Snell, Richard & Fran Sult, Nathan ’75 Taffel, Max ’04 Takada, Yuko Tsukahira, Peggy ’65 & Norris, Charles Turner, Sally ’66 Wilce, Matt Yao, Alejo & Lusan

Decade Clubs recognize donors who have given for 10, 20, 30 or more consecutive years. Donations of any amount count toward Decade Club status. Decade Club members have a tremendous impact at ASIJ with their sustained support.

If you wish to secure your spot in a Decade Club, please consider enrolling in recurring donations through Give2Asia at www.give2asia.org/asij.

Your donation will be automatically charged to your credit card each year and will be tax-deductible in the United States.

50

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

A New Way to Give ASIJ can now accept gifts in Bitcoin and tech entrepreneur Brian Nelson ’85 was our first donor to give in cryptocurrency.

Brian, who is currently senior advisor in Japan to the Kelly Slater Wave Company, explains his choice to donate in Bitcoin and why he gives to ASIJ.

You are our first donor to give to ASIJ using cryptocurrency! We are excited to have this donation option and we would like to share your story with the community to encourage more donors to support ASIJ the same way.

I agree it is exciting to have this option for ASIJ donors.

When I first heard about the option I wanted to try it, so I could understand the process.

What brought your parents to Tokyo?

My father ran IBM in Asia from 1983 to 1988; and I believe made the decision to help build and fund a portion of the middle school.

What were you involved with when you were a student at ASIJ? Varsity football, Varsity basketball (including the Far East tournament and the Hong Kong tournament), charity drives, making yakisoba during school events, cheering on other ASIJ athletes, and participation in general school events (e.g. Kyogen, etc.)

How did you first become interested in Bitcoin and cryptocurrency? When did you first invest?

I started hearing about crypto currency in 2016, roughly seven or eight years after Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin (BTC).

Have you made other donations using Bitcoin/other cryptocurrency to any other non-profits?

I have only given to ASIJ at this time, as that is my main focus for donating, as I attended the school and as did my two sons Sean ’14 and Brad ’16.

How easy was it to give to ASIJ using Bitcoin?

It was very easy. I was able to use Bitpay to make a taxdeductible gift to ASIJ through Give2Asia.

Why would you recommend giving to ASIJ in Bitcoin?

I’d recommend it due to the ease of donating, because it’s an additional choice for how to donate, to provide more use cases for cryptocurrency as that helps the industry, and of course the most important reason, to donate to ASIJ. It is also good for students to see what is possible and how ASIJ is a leader in technology and innovation.

Why do you give to ASIJ? As a graduate of ASIJ, I continually donate to help the school cover future costs, as tuition does not cover all the costs the school has for providing the best education possible. Both of my sons attended ASIJ from nursery/kindergarten through to the eighth and tenth grades respectively; before moving to Hawaii and then later attending college in America. So as an alum and former ASIJ parent it makes sense to me, to keep giving back to ASIJ. Now we have another way to do that, using cryptocurrency.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

51

ALUMNI DONORS 30s

’39 Shimizu, George

40s

’42 Kobayashi, Albert ’45 McKnight, Ronnie (Schwartz) ’48 Burkart, Ned Markley, Pat

50s

’50 Harkness, Don

Layfield, Barbara (Lunn) Lenz, Pam (Alexander) Tucker, Gordon

’51 Fisher, Carl

Frugoli, Susan (Tucker) Garges, Dan

’52 Armstrong, Peter

Nicol, Joanna (Strother) Story, Morris

’53 McGurk, Ann (Potter)

Minenko, Ted Stefanov, Helen (Rutte)

’56 Harkness, Sarah (Wheeler) ’57 Ausman, William

60s

’60 Bergt, Dave

Caudron, Cody Haines, Andrew Lyons, Phyllis McKee, Craig Peacock, Jeff

’61 Harris, Bonita (Bongard) Sapala, Beth (Danker) Vehanen, Marty

’62 Meyer, Fred

Yomine, Daniel

’63 Cheng, Jill (Tsui)

Fitzpatrick, Tod Martino, Bill Meagher, Martha (Mitchell) Meller, Louise Wardlaw, Andrew

’64 Haines, David

Yamada, Leslie (Davis)

’65 Farkas, Jenny (Burkard)

Gorham, Joyce Guillot, Frank Kurahashi, Nancy (Nagase) Lury, Richard Meyer, Mary Norris, Peggy (Tsukahira) Rubenfeld, Linda (Steele)

’66 Bronsal, Jeanne (See) Dean, Ron Turner, Sally (Noll)

Fattal, Leon Thompson, Heather (McCune) Uramatsu, Haruko

’67 Cromwell, Penny

Nielsen, Jeannette (Elsener)

’68 Chitani, Yinsei (Chang)

’58 Rasmussen, Stirling ’59 McCoy, Will

Glazier, Kenneth Tanaka, Richard Trozpek, Robin (Weeks) Colville, Glenn Oshima, Robert Pierce, Lucia (Buchanan) Rahman, Farida Sakamoto, Dave Vivian, Tal

’69 Cohen, Frederick Harnik, Peter Manning, Tom Neff, Suzi (Neff)

52

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

70s

’70 Anderson, Stephanie

Higa, Ernie Huskins, Debbie McVeigh, Rod Prendergast, Ellen (Gadsby) Tsai, Linda (Yen)

’71 Blizzard, Jan (Schaale)

Hayao, George Holloway, Kathy (Holloway) Moore, Craig Sanoden, Jim Weiss, Steve

’72 Alger, Ellen (Matthews) Flynn, Karin (Jagel) Francischetti, Mark Gleason, Ann Rainoff, Brad

’73 Boatwright, David

Carroll, Claudia Clough, Julie (Van Wyk) Kleinjans, Connie Leybold, Sandy (Colville) Magnuson, Jody (Kroehler) Melnick, Mark Moody, Brian Moss, Carolyn Reiser, Dorothy (Cohen) Smith, Karen (Frost) Tsuchihashi, Noriko

’74 Nagata, Paul

Reynolds, A-Lan (Von Hornlein)

’75 Cakebread, Rosemary (Januleski) Kidder, Jon Niimi, Reiko Sult, Nathan Wakamatsu, Ernie

’76 Anderson, Rusty

Horwitz, Liz (Yanagihara) Kidder, Paul Rich, Miriam Schaffer, Sally

’77 Honaman, Andy Kuroda, Mitzi Ryu, Roy

’78 Matsumoto, Kent Oline, Mark Struebing, Joel

’79 Whitehead, Charles

80s

’80 Breer, Charles

Kirby, Kyoko (Ono) Schmelzeis, Joe Walsh, Will

’81 Harada, Mary (Che)

Ledbetter, Phaedra (Onuma) Livingston, Jerry Lund, Andy Mera, Yuhka Walsh, Bob

’82 Bastick, Lisa

Fujii, Dan Gould, Darryl Kuwana, Yumi (Mera) Piez, Catherine

’83 Duke, Sue

Ehrenkranz, Andra (Bowman) Fujii, Dave Hattori, Hitomi (Wakita) Krisher, Joseph Morgenstern, Frederick

’84 Anton, Yuriko (Takahashi) Appeldoorn, Caspar Fujishima, Julie Nakayama, Tetsu Suzuki, Rei

’85 Brennan, Susie

Callanan, Erin Hayase, John Krouse, Jennifer Marini, Buddy Nelson, Brian Nishida, Tina (Yamano)

’86 Berkove, Ethan

Knode, Steve Lee, David Nakamatsu, Greg

’87 Beitchman, Greg

Kohl, Kari (Wilkinson) Rich, Motoko Sanders, Mike Sharp, Robert

’88 Abe, Minako

Baker, Fred Durfee, Peter Fisher, Michael Marini, Nina Morgenstern, David Quinn, Willie Sasaki-Saito, Anna (Sasaki) Wakat, Barbi White, Lisa (Wardell) Yu-Hoshi, Sherry (Yu)

’89 Anonymous

Cole, Marcy or Mo DiCicco, Daniel Sano, Tokuya

90s

’90 Curnutt, Heather

Jiang Yamaguchi, Kiki (Jiang) Krisher, Ako (Inatomi) Ogawa, Andrew Zee, Jinly

’98 Douglas, Brian

Morohoshi, Shinobu Okamoto, Tet

’99 Pontius, Beth

Sumida, Shiori Woods, Bob

00s

’00 Fincher, Adair

Garrett, Greg Joslyn, Andrew

’01 Endo, Kristy

Woods, Matt

’02 Fujimoto, Sohko Naoi, Nozomi O’Brien, Kelly

’03 Anonymous

Leslie, Dave Shirakawa, Kotoe

’04 Taffel, Max ’05 Leslie, Roshan

Wakutsu, Shuji

’06 Araki, Yumi

Thornton, Michael

’91 Kaser, Pat

’07 Wakutsu, Kohei ’09 Bender, Will

’92 Harvey, Chris

10s

Nakamatsu, Gaylynn Yoshida-Smith, Jenni Tanaka, Moichi

’93 Edward, Mayumi (Nakayama) Fukuma, Lalaka (Ogawa)

’94 Anonymous

Greig, Katherine Huo, Jeffrey Nishimi, Tetsuya

’95 Anonymous

Sundquist, Alex

’96 Huo, Eugene

Shimizu, Sunny

’97 Ewart, Emilie (Fisher)

’10 Kanzawa, Janet Maeji, Kana Takano, Mimi

’11 Hattori, Enna ’13 Conwill, Louisa Deck, Andrew Kami, Riana

’14 Nakayama-Cooper, Erica ’15 Endo, Mary Hattori, Mina

Pontius, Pamela

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

53

PARENT DONORS Parents & Alumni Parents *Abdulla, Rangana & Mikaal Abe, Minako ’88 & Shelton, Michael *Adams, Jim & Nancy Anonymous (5) Armstrong, Ryan & Rieko Balian, Anush & Razmik *Barber, John & Sue *Barry, Jim & Martha Becchetti, Jamie & Okada, Kyoko Bennett, Stephen & Carrie Benning, Miyuki Bernier, Jeffrey & Seiko Besson, Thomas & Andriani, Ruri *Black, Jerry & Sayuri *Blizzard, Jan ’71 & Craig Blodgett, Seth & Sandy *Brennan, Susie ’85 & Anderson, William *Brewer, Brady & Darcy *Brinsley, Catlan & John Burpee, Mark & Nakamura, Machi *Butcher, Arthur & Elizabeth Caldwell, Dale & Megumi Cancella, Jason & Eileen Cannon, Alan & Kitakado, Fuyumi *Carlin, Chris & Donna Carrillo, Christy & Littlefield, Tim Cashell, Kieron & Haga, Kotoha Cheung, Jasper & Takako *Chitani, Yinsei ’68 & Yoshio Chuang, Peter & Harumi Chuchro, Kathryn & Doug Ciganer Albeniz, Archibald & Yoko Confer, Dwain & Miah Conrad, Andrew & Chitose *Coopat, Tom & Cheryle *Cooper, Peter & Pamela *Cosby, Jeannette *Crossman, John & Betsy D’Attanasio, Paul & Karen Dan, Basilius & Chieko Daver, Roxana & Massion, Peter *DiCicco, Daniel ’89 & Yuko *Dornoff, Jeffrey & Deanne Douglas, Brian ’98 & Megumi *Downs, Vicky *Duke, Ben & June Durfee, Peter ’88 & Megumi Edmunds, Eric & Misa

54

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

*Edward, Mayumi ’93 Epstein, Jonathan & Liu *Estrem, Paul & Eileen *Farkas, Jenny ’65 & Arthur *Farrell, Tiffany & Moorefield, John Fini, Francesco & Ma, Son-Thuy Fink, Jim & Mika *Fjeldsted, Matthew & Chauntelle *Folsom, Richard & Qian *Fujii, Daniel ’82 & Yuki Fujii, David ’83 & Makiko Fujishima, Julie ’84 Fukikoshi, Akihiro & Tomoko Furuta, Taketora & Saiko *Gogerty, Dan & Lana Greenberg, Steven & ObuchiGreenberg, Mika *Hagerty, William & Chrissy Hanada, Kozo & Jitsuko Harigaya, Masatomo & Tomoko Harrison, Jeff & Manon *Harte, Esther Hashimoto, Takeshi Hashimoto, Yutaka & Hisae Hassan, Matthew & Ojima, Mari *Hatakeyama, Yasu & Maki *Hattori, Hitomi ’83 & Seikou Heatherly, Robert & Jennifer *Hermann, Beatrice & Kenneth Herzenberg, Jon & Davenport Herzenberg, Carla *Higa, Ernie ’70 & Aya *Hind, Lou Hiramoto, Hideyuki & Shiobara-Hiramoto, Fumiko *Hirata, Hideo & Tomoko Holder, Verna & Dowrich, Dave Holjo, Mats & Hiroe *Hori, Naohiro & Kumi *Huskins, Shirley *Hyland, Jason Igarashi, Koji & Mie Imai, Eiji & Hiromi Ishibashi, Atsuko & Yuichiro *Ito, Masatoshi & Kumi *Jacobson, Roger Jain, Raj & Kang, Claire *James, Larry & Sharon Jiang Yamaguchi, Kiki ’90 & Yamaguchi, Tetsuro

Kagimoto, Tadahisa & Eve Kaneko, Tetsuya & Sofia *Kang, Edwin & Mae Kasamatsu, David Jun & Rika *Kawada, Susan & Tadahiro Kawakami, Junpei & Mai Kawasaki, Lauren & Tatsuo Keyes, Justin & Sasaki, Mai *Kindred, Jonathan & Sachiko *Kirby, Kyoko ’80 & Peter Knode, Stephen ’86 & Sharon Kobayashi, Terumi & Takashi Kochhar, Rakesh & Priti Kohler, Barbara & Skorski, Joseph Koike, Junji & Aya Kozloski, Richard & Laura *Kraft, Joseph & Miwa Kwan, Sora & Jason *L’Heureux, Marc & Heidi *Lane, Nick & Holly *Latimore, Timothy & Chieko Lebrun, Ken & Laurie Lee, Michael & Ami Ma, Sam & Quan, Veronica Macek, Craig & Debby *Majid, Nasir & Chie *Mallat, Mary Margaret & Deck, David Marini, Buddy ’85 & Hitomi *Masayama, Hiroshi & Hiroko Matsudaira, Aki & Koichi *Matsui Koll, Kathy & Koll, Jesper Matsumoto, Tomoaki & Yumiko *Matsumoto, Toyokazu & Naomi *Matsuo, Taro & Lee Matsuo, Yuki McCullough, Jacob & Angela *McNeill, Jeffrey & Kazuko *Mendoza, Eli & Chizu Mentzas, Spyro *Merlino, Marc & Lotta *Meyer, Joseph & Minako *Miller, Scott & Mary *Miller, Tony & Melin, Cecilia Min, Jungsuk & Sohn, Stella Mito, Koichiro & Kiyomi Mizuno, Toshizumi & Junko Mohamed, Iku & Emi Morgenstern, Fred ’83 & Kendra Muir, James & Kanai, Miwa *Mukherjee, Jaya &

Mukhopadhyay, Abhijit *Multz, Jeffrey & Susan Murai, Noriko & Yeskel, Bill Murakami, Yumiko & Moses, Todd Nakai, Tomoko Nakamura, Mariko & Hiro Nakamura, Yoichi & Sakiko Nakano, Akinori & Mariko Nakashima, Amane & Chizuru Nakayama, Tetsu ’84 & Ayumi *Nelson, Brian ’85 *Nelson, Laurie & Michael Nelson, Michael & Sabina Neureiter, Kirk & Mariko *Nishida, David & Tina ’85 Nishimura, Hiroyuki & Etsuko Noddin, Robert & Janette *Noyes, Susan & Jim *O’Brien, Jeffrey & Willcut, Deborah O’Donovan, Erin & Timothy O’Shea, Stephen & Saigusa O’Shea, Kie Ohashi, Hiromasa & Momoko Okada, Hikaru & Yoshiko Okamoto, Tet ’98 & Eri Okuno, Marcus & Kazuko Park, Chiman & Seo, Alice *Pierce, Peter & Sare, Steven *Pietraszek, Henry & Margaret *Piez, Catherine ’82 & Whatford, Mark Platek, Nir *Plum, John & Mimi *Pontius, Beth ’99 *Pontius, Pamela ’97 & Rankin, Greg *Porté, Thierry & Tashiro-Porté, Yasko *Possman, John & Shoko Prairie, Shane & Ginny *Prewitt, Dave & Carol *Proctor, David Raineri, Kim & Heather Raub, Josh & Mihoko *Reckord, Josh & Nancy Reese, Lenore & Isenberg, Joshua Regent, Cristopher & Heidi Reilly, Kenneth & Debbie Rekate, Jason & Anna *Relnick, Phil & Nobuko Ricci, Vince & Amemiya, Mari Rolls, Grant & Harris-Rolls, Joanne *Rynerson, Barbara & David

Sakemi, Takeshi & Mie Salathé, Gregory & Regina *Sasaki-Saito, Anna ’88 *Sasanuma, Catherine & Taisuke Schiff, Pei & Doug *Schlichting, Richard & Cynthia Schultz, Mark & Disa Seltzer, Susan & Theodore Semaya, David & Masako *Shah, Sachin & Rajul *Silecchia, Thomas & Tate, Saori Silva Mittelstedt, Linda & Mittelstedt, Mark Silver, Nick & Yumiko Slattery, Ronald & Toshiko Smith, Charles & Emi *Snell, Richard & Fran Sobajima, Hisaya & Kinuko Sowder, Stuart & Yuson, Rusty *Squier, Mid & Carol *Stokes, Paul & Rose *Sullivan, Daniel Suzuki, Erie & Tamami Suzuki, Rei ’84 Tahara, Kunio & Eriko Tajima, Keiichi & Yuko *Takada, Yuko Takai, Kota & Megumi Takamiya, Toshiro & Shino *Takano, Kyoko & Hiroyuki Takigayama, Yue & Hiroaki *Talbot, Jay & Yuki *Tanimoto, Hiroshi & Michiyo Tawara, Ted & Lia Timms, Ryan & Yamaura-Timms, Aya Topping, Mark & Rich, Motoko ’87 Toppino, Stephanie & Jon-Paul Tsuchida, Carol Tsujiguchi, Hironobu & Maki *Tsukahira, Peggy ’65 & Norris, Charles *Tsusaka, Miki & Jun *Tunis, Jeffrey Upadhyay, Bhupesh & Sajala Uruma, Fred & Ryoko Versteeg, David & Jennifer *Wakamatsu, Ernie ’75 & Yuko *Wakutsu, Kyoko & Hiroshi *Wardell, Linda *Whitson, Thomas & Misty

*Wierman, Albert & Ineke Wilkinson, Bryan & Randi *Williamson, Charles & Sharon *Witt, Gene & Janet *Xu, Yeren & Wang, Fan *Yamasaki, Arata (Paul) & Afifah *Yanagihara, Kaworu & Hikaru *Yao, Alejo & Lusan *Yoshida, James & Sumiko Yoshida, Kumiko *Yu-Hoshi, Sherry ’88 & Hoshi, Katsuhiro Zhang, Jessica & Zhao, Changming *Alumni Parent

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

55

DONORS Faculty & Staff *Adams, Nancy Apel, Warren & Tricia *Araki, Yumi ’06 Bennett, Stephen & Carrie Benning, Miyuki Blodgett, Seth & Sandy Branstetter, Genta *Bruzek, Patty Burpee, Mark & Nakamura, Machi Cancella, Jason & Eileen Carrillo, Christy *Chitani, Yinsei ’68 Confer, Dwain & Miah *Cooper, Peter & Pamela *Crandall, Les *Crossman, Betsy Curtis, Pip *Darrigan, Julia *Dennis, Thurman Denver, Amy *Downs, Vicky *Edgar, Clee & Suzanne Faulk, Laura & Andrew *Fujimoto, Sohko ’02 Fuller, Jody *Gilman, Irene Gilmartin, Ed *Gogerty, Dan & Lana Hardin, Jim & Marti Harrison, Jeffrey & Manon *Hatakeyama, Maki Heidt, Nick & Koizumi, Mary Herzenberg, Jon *Hind, Lou *Hoffman, Joseph Janewicz, Laurel Jinks, Jarrad & Colosimo, Anna *Jones-Morton, Pamela (PhD) Kanoh, Aileen *Kanzawa, Janet ’10 *Kemmerer, Ruthli Kita, Virginia & Hiroyuki Krisher, Ako ’90 L’Heureux, Marc & Heidi Lonergan, Claire Macek, Craig & Deborah Mallat, Mary Margaret McCullough, Jacob & Angela Morohoshi, Shinobu ’98

56

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Nakai, Tomoko Neale, David *Nelson, Erin Nelson, Michael & Sabina Nickle, Carole *O’Brien, Jeffrey Ogawa, Ryo *Pierce, Peter *Pietraszek, Margaret Power, Candace Prairie, Shane & Ginny *Prewitt, Dave & Carol Raub, Josh & Mihoko *Reckord, Josh & Nancy Rekate, Anna *Relnick, Nobuko Ren, Jean Richard, James Rolls, Grant & Harris-Rolls, Joanne *Rynerson, Barbara & David Silva Mittelstedt, Linda *Snell, Richard & Fran *Squier, Mid & Carol Sugiya, Minako Suzuki, Ryosuke Takano, Kyoko Takano, Mimi ’10 Takigayama, Yue Upadhyay, Bhupesh *Vasché, Polly Vriend, Pete & Amy Wakutsu, Kyoko Wilce, Matt Wilkinson, Bryan & Randi *Williams, Renee *Witt, Gene & Janet Yoshioka, Sayuri *Former Faculty/Staff

Tribute Gifts In memory of Ernie Carlson Shimizu, George ’39 In memory of Ki Nimori Anonymous

Friends Alromaihi, Saleh Aoi, Kumiko Kamano, Hiroyuki & Harumi Kroll, Cody Kuriyama, Sumihide Tani, Dennis Terai, Hidenori Zahedi, Ardeshir

Giving has meaning for me because it connects me to the community in a profound way. What I give comes back daily often tenfold. We are all receivers and givers in this community.

—Jody Fuller Current Faculty

Gift-in-Kind Aoi, Kumiko ‡ Cruse, Lile Gilboy, George & Coral Kuriyama, Sumihide ‡ Deceased

Corporate Aflac Give2Asia

Corporate Contribution Program A3A Partners LLC Abbott Medical Japan Co., Ltd. Accenture Japan Ltd. adidas Japan K.K. Agos Japan, Inc. AIG Japan Holdings K.K. AIR LIQUIDE Japan, Ltd. Asia Resources Family Office LLC Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited Biotronik Japan, Inc. Carl Zeiss Co., Ltd. Celanese Japan Limited Chubb Insurance Japan Cisco Systems, Inc. Doehler Japan Corporation Ecolean Japan Representative Office Ellex, Inc. EY Advisory & Consulting Co., Ltd. FOX Networks Group Japan Franklin Covey Japan Ltd. GAP Japan K.K. Geodesic Japan G.K. Geometry Global Japan G.K. Hafele Japan K.K.

Heidrick & Struggles Japan GK Heitman, LLC Hitachi-Johnson Controls Air Conditioning, Inc. K.K. Halifax Associates LVMH Watch & Jewelry Japan K.K. McDonald’s Company (Japan), Ltd. Momentum Japan Inc. Morrison & Foerster Asia Services MRM Worldwide Inc. Nihon Michelin Tire Co., Ltd. Nike Japan Corporation Nikko Asset Management Co., Ltd. Oclaro Japan, Inc. Ogilvy & Mather Japan GK Oliver Wyman Group K.K. Orbotech Japan Co., Ltd. PAG Investment Management Limited Perform Investment Japan K.K. Pernod Ricard Japan PGIM Real Estate Japan Ltd. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Rickmers-Line GmbH & Co. KG SBI Bits Co.m Ltd. Schenker-Seino Co., Ltd. Siwelco LLC Squire Gaikokuho Kyodo Jigyo Horitsu Jimusho STMicroelectronics K.K. Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd. Tastemade, Inc. tesa tape K.K. Teva API Japan Ltd. The Capbridge Group K.K. The New York Times TowerJazz Panasonic Semiconductor Co., Ltd. Toyota Research Institute Advanced Development, Inc. UCB Japan Co., Ltd. WineInStyle K.K.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

57

STRENGTH & COURAGE Donors

JULY 1, 2018–JUNE 30, 2019

Fincher, Adair ’00 Fisher, Michael ’88 Fujimoto, Sohko ’02 Joslyn, Andrew ’00 Ledbetter, Phaedra ’81 & Mark Lund, Andy ’81 & Denise Nakamatsu, Greg ’86 Sharp, Robert ’87

THE GATE SOCIETY Members

The Gate Society is ASIJ’s giving society for those who have arranged a planned gift.

One option is to make a bequest in your will or living trust. You simply name ASIJ (or in the USA, “Give2Asia/ASIJ) as the beneficiary. You can pledge a fixed amount or a percentage of your estate.

A bequest allows you to: • • • • • •

Make a gift to ASIJ. Provides you with continued access to your wealth.

Gives you the flexibility to change your mind.

Eases any concerns about outliving your resources.

Provides estate tax deduction.

Creates a lasting legacy at ASIJ.

Planned giving is easy!

¥ or

$ Bequest Step 1 Name ASIJ as a beneficiary

Estate Tax Deduction Step 2 Your estate receives favorable tax benefit

Gift to ASIJ Step 3 Your estate delivers an enduring contribution to ASIJ

nother option is to name ASIJ as a beneficiary on your IRA, 401K or other A retirement account.

If you have already added ASIJ to your estate plans, please let us know so we can recognize your generosity by including you in the Gate Society.

58

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Anderson, Irene ’74 & Somes, James Bergt, Dave ’60 & Jeannine Cohen, Frederick ’69 Cooper, Peter & Pamela Downs, Vicky ‡Downs, Ray ’50 Glazier, Kenneth ’67 Harada, Mary ’81 & Peterson, Greg ‡Harris, Frederick ‡Haven, Robert Hesselink, Ann ’71 ‡Hoffsommer, Abigail ’27 ‡Hoffsommer, Walter ’29 Huddle, James ’70 Jones-Morton, Pamela (PhD) Ludlow-Ortner, Julia ’72 & Ortner, Robert Muhl, Dick Nichols, Kerry & Lynn ‡Nicodemus, David ’33 Proctor, David Shibata, Hideko ’66 ‡Snyder, Ronald ‡Sullivan, John Sundberg, Carl ’77 Suzuki, Chizu ’64 Tunis, Jeffrey Ware, Brent ’74 ‡ Deceased

ALUMNI

Reunions

2019 Tokyo, Japan

ALUMNI RECEPTION THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

59

ALUMNI

Reunions

On the eve of Spirit Day on Friday, September 27, ASIJ hosted a community reception in Tokyo— something we haven't done here in Japan in several years. The event took place on a lovely late summer evening where guests gathered in a second floor room overlooking beautiful Japanese gardens at the historic Meiji Kinenkan in downtown Tokyo.

Upon arrival, guests were greeted by an unexpected attendee, our very own mustang mascot! As we were in the hometown of the ASIJ Mustang, our mascot came out in full support of the alumni event and joined in the fun by posing for photos and sharing our latest creation in the alumni office, the ASIJ Gate photo frame, made from one of the 3-D printers in the Creative Arts and Design Center.

Mar y Margaret Mallat, Interim Director of Advancement, officially welcomed everyone to the event, and shared how her role as a parent of two ASIJ graduates paired with her long tenure at the school in both volunteer roles as well as a professional capacity, has had such a meaningful impact. Mary Margaret is extremely enthusiastic about the year ahead and is looking forward to meeting more members of the alumni community

Tomi Takahashi ’84, Stan Aoyama ’78 and Ernie Higa ’70

Anna Sasaki-Saito ’88, Sherry Yu-Hoshi ’88, Miyori Takano ’10 and Rina Hara ’03

60

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ALUMNI

Reunions

Mary Margaret delivers a speech to the attendees

Tamara Crawford ’78 and her husband Edward Crawford Afifah Yamasaki (AP ’88–’03) and her sister Farida Rahman ’68

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

61

ALUMNI

Reunions

in her new role. Jim Hardin, Head of School, and his wife Marti were in attendance, as were Scott Wilcox, Deputy Head of School, and his wife Sheila, Matt Wilce, Director of Communications, and Claire Lonergan, Assistant Director of Development and Alumni Relations.

About 100 Alumni, alumni parents, former/ current faculty and friends attended the evening event including John Salisbury (FF ’98–’18) and Yinsei Chitani (FS ’92–’16). Guests enjoyed freshly prepared sushi, as well as well as an assortment of canapes and desserts. As with many ASIJ community events, there was no shortage of stories being shared, but what made this evening so special was the true variety of class years and groups that attended.

Lon Reeder ’74 speaks with Miguell Malacad ’12

Alumni from across generations—from the classes of the 60s to recent graduates from the Class of ’18—came together because of their shared connection to ASIJ. Many of the recent graduates have newly started work in Tokyo following graduation from university, and many of our guests had the opportunity to connect with people in a variety of industries—a rare occasion for those that aren't able to attend many ASIJ events. In addition to diverse class years in attendance, many alums that happened to be visiting Japan for work such as Nicky Nichols ’69, or on holiday like Lon Reeder ’74, were able to attend the reception—one guest even extended his stay in Japan to attend our event!

This unique get together was one that we will not soon forget and as ASIJ looks to grow alumni engagement both here in Japan and around the world. We hope to make the Tokyo reception an annual fall event, in addition to our annual stateside reception. Be on the lookout for more information next fall.

Mike Chan ’00 in conversation

Kacie Leviton ’98 and Buddy Marini ’85

62

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ALUMNI

Reunions

Keiichiro Kinoshita ’15, Senichi Shibayama ’15 and friend, Kai Laughlin ’15, Yuka Sadayuki ’15, Emma Takahashi ’15 and Ken Baburek ’15

Kei Kuwahara ’09 chats with Buddy Marini ’85

John Salisbury (AP ’08–’15, FF ’98–’16) and Yinsei Chitani ’68

Landon Budge ’01 and Paul Hastings ’00 talk with Kristy Endo ’01 and Jules Theil

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

63

ALUMNI

’99

20th Reunion ASIJ Chofu Campus October 4–6, 2019

Naomi Hayase ’99 and Tamina Plum ’99 organized their 20th reunion in Tokyo this past October, and they extended the invitation to the classes from ’96–’02. The weekend kicked off early for some with a special trip to Tokyo Disneyland on Thursday, October 3. On Friday morning, the group began the day as many of them did back in their school days, with an ASIJ bus pick-up in Kichijoji and nostalgic bus ride out to Chofu.

After the school tour, the group gathered in the theater for a private lunch which (thanks to the wonderful kitchen staff at ASIJ) was alum favorite, vintage chicken katsu with ginger chicken sauce! During lunch, Debbie Wissel ’99 was surprised to find herself singing in the background as the musical from 1999 was streaming on the projector. Long serving current faculty who stopped in to say hello included Javier Fernandez, Bapi Ghosh and Susan Islascox.

The group was welcomed back to the ASIJ campus mid-morning by Mary Margaret Mallat, Interim Director of Advancement, Matt Wilce, Director of Communications, and Claire Lonergan, Assistant Director of Development and Alumni Relations. Ron Dirkse (FF ’74–’08) and Wally Ingebritson (FF ’86–’09) made a special appearance at ASIJ for the reunion, as did the ASIJ mustang mascot.

Friday evening, the group got a real treat for dinner at Fatz’s The San Franciscan in Kichijoji, owned by Jonathan Levin ’99. Saturday was just as memorable with live music in Kichijoji by Jon, George Quaiver ’99 and Daniel Clark ’99 who got their band One/More/Mile back together again for the night. In addition the group got to hear music by Alex Holmes ’00 and Lucas Hubbell ’00 and Kathy Knowles ’99 who DJ’d the event.

Once everyone arrived on campus, the class was led on a school tour by Claire Lonergan. The class was eager to see what had changed and what had remained the same, and the tour also included a special trip upstairs, above the bus parking garage, to the tennis courts. Once on the courts, Naomi took the opportunity to share some special words of remembrance for one of their former classmates, Michiel Brandt ’99 who passed away in 2012, and who the class dedicated an umpire chair in her memory in 2013.

64

Reunions

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ALUMNI

Alison Arnote ’99 catches up with Erina Kainuma ’99

Reunions

The Mustang greets reunion attendees

Kyoko Wakutsu (current staff) talks with reunion organizer, Tamina Plum ’99

Attendees viewed footage from their school days in the theater

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

65

ALUMNI

’62

Reunion Vancouver, Canada October 5–8, 2019

Diana Grilli ’62 reports on her class’s recent reunion, which saw 26 members of the Class of ’62 meet in Vancouver, Canada, October 5–8, 2019. The following classmates and alumni attended, coming from throughout the United States, Japan and Europe: Bill ’62 and Joyce Cox, Jeff ’62 and Mary Durgee, Cinnamon El-Mulla ’62, Judy (Harris) Garbutt ’62 and Ian Garbutt, Carol Gosho ’62, Diana Grilli ’62, Tom Hargreaves ’62, Bonnie ’61 (Bongard) Harris and Gene Harris, Maria (Ting) Huang ’62 and Dean Huang, Frank ’62 and Mary Margaret May, Wendy (Kalenda) Prestrud ’62 and Howard Stikes, Richard Starrett ’62, James ’62 and Elaine Yang, all from various areas of the United States. Tomoko Takafuji ’62 joined us from Kyushu, Japan, Yurika Pringsheim ’62 came from Germany, and Masaki Watanabe ’62 and Nancy Wu ’63 joined from Vancouver.

Nancy Wu welcomed the class, facilitated our traveling around the city, and arranged for amazing feasts at restaurants near our hotel. Ian Garbutt, Frank May, Howard Stikes, Tom Hargreaves, Gene Harris, and others who had cars, also drove us around the city every day.

In addition to eating delicious dinners and having meetings at the hotel, the group visited Nitobe Memorial Garden and The Museum of Anthropology—both beautiful, extremely interesting places on the grounds of the University of British Columbia—the Capilano Suspension Bridges, Granville Market and the Maritime Museum. Diana, an attorney, even visited the Vancouver Provincial Court, observed several trials, and met a judge.

66

Reunions

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Diana volunteered to organize the reunion, which took place at the Sutton Place Hotel, a wonderful, luxurious hotel.

For readers who haven’t had a chance to visit Vancouver, it’s a beautiful, cosmopolitan city. We ate well, and ate a lot. Nancy offered to organize dinners at the Sala Thai and Kirin Mandarin Restaurants which, with her great input, were superb. Masaki arranged another great dinner at a Chinese family restaurant. Wendy and Bonnie organized the farewell dinner at the Salam Bombay restaurant.

While the class had previously joined forces at reunions in Alexandria, Virginia, Chicago, Toronto and Ann Arbor, this was the first class reunion which Jeff Durgee and Richard Starrett were able to join. Their presence, along with Nancy Wu joining us as an honorary member of the Class of ’62, added immeasurably to the fun and camaraderie. The class is already planning its next reunion, which may be a river cruise on the Mississippi or St Lawrence Seaway!

ALUMNI

Reunions

70s

Reunion Orlando, Florida July 2–5, 2019

ASIJ Classes from the 70s came together with their friends and families from July 2–5 for four days of fun at the Lake Buena Vista Resort Village & Spa in Orlando, Florida. The trip began with a warm meet and greet filled with lots of hugs, good cheer and ASIJ goodie bags for everyone to enjoy. Some memorable daytime activities were led by Laura Wise ’77 and Asa Sandblom ’79 and her partner Petter taught the group tai chi and aikido, and an intro to martial arts. The Orlando get-together was filled with multiple pool party events—where I heard the Philly cheese steak was a big hit—dinners at Susuru Izakaya and Dragonfly Robata Grill & Sushi.

Cheryl Wise ’79 would like to thank all those who were able to attend and for coming from all over the country and world, and wished to send a special thank you to Seiko Niimi ’79, Debbie Wise ’82, Asa Sandblom ’79, Laura Wise ’77 and Hannah Gibbons ’77.

’76

Mini Reunion Tokyo, Japan May 2018

Classmates from ’76 (and one from ’78) had a mini reunion last year in Tokyo! The group enjoyed re-connecting and hope to make a trip back to Tokyo soon. Pictured above left to right: front row Chisa Hara Fujita ’76, Hideko Douchin-Takasaki ’76, Noriko Furuya ’76, Cristina Sindicic-Cherubini ’76, Ken Kurosu ’76, Mami Hayashi-Inoue ’78 and Elaine Scolinos Kusaba ’76.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

67

ALUMNI

’84

35th Reunion Tokyo, Japan July 12, 2019

The Class of ’84 and their families traveled to Tokyo this past July to celebrate their 35th reunion. The group came together from all over the world for a weekend of fun here in Japan.

The celebratory weekend kicked off on Friday, July 12 with an evening boat cruise around Tokyo Bay. On Saturday, the class took a trip down memory lane with a visit to the ASIJ campus, including a nostalgic bus ride out to Chofu.

Upon arrival to ASIJ, the class was greeted in the main lobby

by Mary Margaret Mallat, Interim Director of Advancement, Claire Lonergan, Assistant Director of Development and Alumni Relations, and Matt Wilce, Director of Communications, who welcomed them back with a few snacks and plenty of water to

’89

68

Reunions

keep hydrated in the Tokyo Summer heat! The group flipped through yearbooks from their class year before departing on a full tour of campus led by Mary Margaret.

As the group reminisced on their school days and relieved the walk around ASIJ’s hallways, they were surprised to see so many changes, but also impressed that so many things have remained the same. The gymnasium and the main field were especially memorable, and the group made sure to pose for a group photo!

30th Reunion San Francisco, CA October 4–6, 2019

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

The Class of ’89 celebrated their 30th reunion in San Francisco October 4–6, 2019. Celebrations started with a Friday night meet and greet at the Alchemist Bar, followed by group yoga on the beach on Saturday morning and a very moving meditation of ASIJers remembering classmates they've lost. Smaller groups dispersed for hiking, biking and napping until the main event on Saturday night.

The main event was a cocktail hour and seated dinner in a private dining room at Boulevard Restaurant. Over 40 alumni were in attendance, including a number of people from other classes. Everyone had a wonderful time and agreed that the next reunion should take place in a year or two rather than five!

Reunions

ALUMNI

’09

10th Reunion Los Angeles, CA August 2019 Glyn Noguchi ’09 reports on the Class of ’09, who recently came together to celebrate their 10 year reunion. Alumni from all over the United States (and from as far away as London!) descended on the streets of Los Angeles for a weekend of reconnecting, reminiscing, sunbathing and naturally, karaoke. With attendees from both the graduating clas s as well as t hos e w ho were classmates for a few grades along the way, the weekend was a touching reminder of the unique, lifelong bonds that ASIJ builds. Cheers to those who could not make it—we hope to see you in another ten years!

’14

5th Reunion New York, NY & Tokyo, Japan July 27 & August 3, 2019

Groups from the Class of ’14 got together in both New York City and Tokyo this summer to celebrate their 5-year reunion. In New York, a group from the class met up at a really fun gas station-turned-bar in Brooklyn for drinks and light snacks. They had over 40 attendees, including classmates who flew from Australia and France! In Tokyo, classmates from 2014 got together where they had a great nomikai with classmates at an awesome izakaya in Kabuki-cho. In true Japan fashion, the night ended with some fun karaoke and dancing. Both celebrations were truly great!

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

69

ALUMNI

Upcoming Reunions

New York City, New York

COMMUNITY RECEPTION Contact: Claire Lonergan (alumni@asij.ac.jp) New York City, New York

We are thrilled to announce our upcoming community reception this January in New York City, NY. All ASIJ alumni, alumni parents and former faculty are invited to attend. Head of school Jim Hardin will be in attendanceto share updates from the ASIJ campus. Please save the date for an evening of fun with the ASIJ communtiy.

January 31, 2020 More details will be shared shortly via email.

70

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

ALUMNI

Upcoming Reunions

’60

60th Reunion Los Angeles, CA to Vancouver, Canada Coral Princess cruise from LA to Vancouver May 10–13, 2020 Andrew Haines (AHaines42@aol.com)

Photo courtesey of Princess Cruises

’00

20th Reunion

’10

10th Reunion

Tokyo, Japan Oct 2020 Gary Yamada, Aimee Singer, Paulene Kawasjee (asijagent2000@gmail.com)

Los Angeles, CA September 5–6 Kana Maeji (kanamaeji12@gmail.com) and Janet Kanzawa (janet.kanzawa@gmail.com)

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

71

ALUMNI

Class Agents

Classes pre-1955 and those noted below need class agents. Please contact alumni@asij.ac.jp if you are interested.

1955 William L. Cryderman

wcryderman@comcast.net

1956 Mei Sun Li

1965 Class Agent Required 1966 Annie Nichols Campbell

campbell.annie@gmail.com

meisunli@comcast.net Sandra L. Maclver Thompson sandra.thompson3@comcast.net

1957 Charles C. Wu

wucc57@gmail.com

1958 Class Agent Required 1959

Class Agent Required

1960 David E. Bergt

dbergt@comcast.net

1961 Stu Bennett

stu.bennettCEO@ SanFranciscoSeamaster.com

1962 1963

William L. Martino txmartino@yahoo.com

1964 David Bonner

dbonner@regenevita.com

72

1967 Grenda F. Penhollow Moss grendamoss@yahoo.com

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

1977 Carl E. Sundberg

1978 Deanna Adams Smith

deannasmith1959@gmail.com

1968 David T. Sakamoto

dave.sakamoto@infoontheweb. com Nicholas D. Connor ndconnor@yahoo.com

1969 Laura B. Hertenstein Swanson laura@swanson.com

1970 Daniel Garnitz

dangar46@yahoo.com

1971 Kathy K. Kobata

1972 Linda Suzukawa-Tseng

sutseng@wonder.ocn.ne.jp

Nancy Wu naninvan@me.com

liz@lizhorwitz.com

carl_sundberg_ja@yahoo.com

kkobata21@gmail.com

Katherine C. Bauernschmidt Clarke kcbclarke@gmail.com

1976 Elizabeth M. Yanagihara Horwitz

1973 Class Agent Required 1974 Class Agent Required 1975 Reiko E. Niimi

rniimi@gmail.com

1979 Cheryl Wise

shareallwise@gmail.com

1980 Class Agent Required 1981 Sherry L. Davis Tighe

tighezoo@sbcglobal.net

1982 Lisa Bastick

omalasq@mac.com

1983 George Mimura

georgemimura@yahoo.com

1984 Judith Walsh Baumhover

baumhover@earthlink.net

1985 Sandra L. Orton Tweed

sandra@prestonmatthews.com

1986 Diane E. Stewart Wack diwack@msn.com

ALUMNI

1987 Robert L. Sharp

robert@redgiant.com

1999 Naomi D. Hayase

naomidhayase@gmail.com Tamina M. Plum taminaplum@gmail.com

1988 Kathrine L. Schmitt Simon

schm0495@gold.tc.umn.edu Sergei P. Hasegawa sergei@purekitchen.com

1989 Linnea M. Hasegawa

tamagomeshi@yahoo.com Samantha Fritz Hurd samf@austin.rr.com

1990 Kentaro K. Relnick krelnick@me.com

1991 Maiko Galles

maikomizutani@hotmail.com

1992 Daniel Brandt

Class Agents

1994 Margaret R. MacCallum

2001 Kyoko Minegishi

2013 Andrew Deck

kyoko.minegishi@gmail.com

2002

Anna L. Tuttle Delia annalynnosu@gmail.com Mitsuhiko Tsukimoto moonbook@gmail.com

2003 Class Agent Required 2004 Jason Mothersill

jasonmothersill@gmail.com

2005 Tatsuya Izumi

izumtat@gmail.com

2006 Tai Dirkse

tdirkse@asij.ac.jp Mana Sasaki Kalohelani mkalohelani@gmail.com

margaretreiko@gmail.com Midori Kano mkano128@gmail.com

1995 Yuki P. Maddox Vos

2007 Rosalind E. Onions

rosalind.onions@gmail.com Carly Baird baird.carly@gmail.com

pearlvos@hotmail.com

1996 Hisashi A. Shimizu

sunny_shimizu@hotmail.com

1997 Sarah Godfrey

sgodfrey617@gmail.com Vicky (Carter) Chen vickycarter@hotmail.com

1998 Kacie E. Rosenberg Leviton kacie_r@hotmail.com

Rose E. Hastings rosehastings@gmail.com

Philip T. Tseng philtseng7@gmail.com

2012 Seung Joon Sung

gtyamada@gmail.com

ktsakuma@yahoo.com McMahon T. Reid homereid@mit.edu

hannahtsiegel@gmail.com

2000 Gary T. Yamada

dbrandttennis@gmail.com

1993 Katherine S. Sakuma Moore

2011 Hannah T. Siegel

2008 Jemil Satterfield

jemilsatt05@gmail.com Miles Bird miles.t.bird@gmail.com

sjsung94@gmail.com

andrewdeck227@gmail.com Lia Camargo lollia1108@gmail.com

2014 Akira Camargo

akinicamargo0125@gmail.com Sayuri Sekimitsu sayuris@stanford.edu

2015 Mina F. Hattori

minahattori@me.com Haruka Higo jjriko@aol.com

2016 Jayne K. Harris

16jkharris@gmail.com Ray M. Hotta ray.hotta@yahoo.com

2017 Andy Takagi

andy.takagi@gmail.com Allessandra Rogers rogeal01@luther.edu

2018 Hikari Shumsky

hikarishumsky@gmail.com

2019 Kenichiro Bernier

b.kenichiro@gmail.com

2009 Ashley Teslik

ashleyteslik@gmail.com Caitlin E. McHose caitlin.mchose@gmail.com

2010 Janet H. Kanzawa

janet.kanzawa@gmail.com Kana Maeji kanamaeji12@gmail.com

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

73

Mustangs Online It's all about connections...

... that's why our new alumni portal is designed to make it easier than ever for you to stay in touch with us and your fellow ASIJers around the globe. Mustangs Online is a dynamic site for alums, alumni parents and former faculty packed with news, information about upcoming events and reunions, photo galleries, internship and job opportunities, and directory. It will also host digital copies of yearbooks going back to 1919, past issues of The Ambassador magazine and a selection of Hanabi articles and content from the archive.

To make the most of this service, we'll need your email so we can send you information about the launch and help you get started. If we don’t already have your up-to-date email, please take a moment to drop us a line at alumni@asij.ac.jp

74

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Artifacts This program for the 1964 Far East Basketball tournaments comes from ASIJ’s first year at the Chofu campus and the year of the Tokyo Olympics. The tournament, held at Tachikawa, Air Base, saw 13 teams compete for the title. The Mustangs were Mike Smith ’64, Terry Herzik ’64, Steve Rice ’64, Steve Haworth ’65, Rick Omata ’64, Roy Murakami ’66, George Shibata ’65, Robert Wolfe ’64, Gaby Sassoon ’66 and Brian Kleinjans ’65.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

75

ALUMNI

Obituaries

Sayonara RICHARD MOSS ’39, passed away the morning of July 3, 2019. He passed away peacefully, with his wife of 69 years, his three sons and their spouses present. Richard attended ASIJ from 1927 following the school’s relocation from Azabu to Nakameguro. He was very fond of his years at ASIJ. Being the third generation of an American family in Japan, his family were very involved with the school. Richard and his siblings all attended ASIJ. His father, Robert F. Moss, was chairman of the school for 17 years, where he personally gave Richard and his siblings, Peg ’35 (Margaret Moss Schoenknecht) and Mike ’38 (Howard M. Moss) their diplomas at graduation.

Richard’s family history in Japan goes back as far as 1884.

His grandfather arrived in Tokyo just 17 years after the Meiji Restoration and five years prior to the enactment of Japan’s

76

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

parliamentary constitution. His grandparents settled in Yokohama, where Richard’s mother, Sybil Howard, was born.

His father relocated to Japan from Columbia, Missouri in 1910 to work for the Truscon Steel Company. His parents were married in 1912 and shortly after, Richard and his siblings were born. Richard shared many stories of his time at ASIJ. Memories of teachers, exams, basketball games, excursions, Junior and Senior Proms, supper parties, ice skating and frequent tea dances. One of which, on his way to and from the Meguro campus, he would frequently stop at Shibuya station to pat Hachiko the dog as he faithfully waited for his master’s return. After graduating, he attended Amherst College but the course of his life and studies were quickly interrupted by the bombing of Pearl Harbor. In 1942, he was

ALUMNI

Obituaries DAVE BEECKEN ’74 passed away on March 3, 2019. He was born in Annaka, Japan, in 1956 and attended ASIJ from 1968–74. Dave loved to explore nature and traveled to numerous parts of the world with his wife Joan.

Those who knew Dave will remember his wit and sense of humor, and his kind and gentle soul.

enrolled in the Naval Japanese Language Program at Boulder, Colorado, instead of spending his senior year in college. Upon graduation he was appointed as a Japanese Language Officer in the Marine Corps on the Pacific front.

He returned to Tokyo as part of the American Occupation to find his hometown leveled, the only recognizable element of his house being the two chimneys left standing. After the war he began his career with NCR in New York, later meeting his wife, together making a life for themselves in Latin America. Settling in Ecuador In 1956, he bought out an NCR distributor and began his own business. His experience at ASIJ prepared him well for the international life he would lead, working with an American Corporation, marrying his wife from Paraguay and having three sons, each born in a different country. They settled in Ecuador in 1956 and lived there for over 63 years. His background in Japan and his fondness for ASIJ were very much part of the persona of Richard Moss, so much so that he had requested his ashes to be taken to the tomb shared by his family at the Yokohama Foreign Cemetery.

WALTER JOHN ARMISTEAD ’80 born on August 2, 1962 passed away on 2 October, 2019.

Walter was born in Port Arthur, TX and attended ASIJ from 1972–76. He went on to study mechanical engineering at the University of Texas in Austin. Walter enjoyed fishing, boating and skiing. He was preceded in death by his wife, Barbara Gail Armistead on June 12, 2019. He is survived by his two sisters, Jeanie Armistead Anderson and a host of friends.

JOHN CLARKE ’49, accomplished actor known for his role on NBC show Days of Our Lives, passed away on 16 October, 2019 aged 88. Born in South Bend, IN, John and his family followed his father, whom was an Army officer, wherever he was stationed.

(Photo: NBC Television) Rarely spending more than one year at a school. Upon high school graduation, John returned to the United States and attended the University of California where he received his BA in theater and went on to complete his master’s degree in television. John went on to serve in the US Air force during the Korean War but maintained his interest in theater as a member of the Air Force Varsitones. John performed as leading man in over 75 plays in Chicago and played various roles on stage. He appeared on many daytime television shows and “big screen” movies and received multiple awards including Afternoon TV’s Best Single Performance Award and an Emmy for Lifetime Achievement following his retirement from Days of Our Lives. He is survived by his wife Patty, children Melinda and Joshua.

KATHLEEN ENGLISH ’84 passed away on June 16, 2019. Kathleen worked in wellness industry for decades, she was adventurous, a giver—seldom a taker. Some of her greatest memories were ASIJ created and she maintained contact with numerous former classmates from ASIJ. All five of her siblings also attended ASIJ. Kathleen was preceded in death by her parents Paul and Marlene English. Her surviving siblings Kevin, Colleen, Cara and Sean.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

77

ALUMNI RAYMOND E. FIELDING ’48, newsreel historian and Dean of the Florida State University Motion Picture Arts, passed away on December 30, 2018 aged 87 years old. Born on January 3, 1931 in Brockton, MA, he moved to Tokyo, Japan in 1946 where his father, Walter was an employee of the Air Force stationed in Japan, during the post-war occupation.

He graduated from ASIJ in 1949 and returned to the United States and went on to complete his BA and MA in theater arts and cinema and a PhD in communications at the University of Southern California. His professional career in the film industry spanned more than six decades, 45 years of which he spent in film education at five different universities.

In the early 1950s Raymond worked in Los Angeles as a writer, director and editor. In 1957, he began working for UCLA and remained on the faculty of the division of motion pictures and television for eight years as an associate professor. Raymond left UCLA in 1965 and went on to lead film programs as director or senior professor at the University of Iowa, Temple University, the University of Houston and the University of Southern California. In 1990 he was appointed dean at the School of Motion pictures, Television and Recording Arts at the Florida State University and served for 13 years until he retired in 2003. He shared his knowledge of film and cinematography writing several books, journals and encyclopedia articles, that have been considered industry standard for over 40 years. His book The American Newsreel 1911–1967 was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1973.

Fielding served as a trustee of the American Film Institute (1973–1979) and as a lifetime member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences since 1981.In the last 35 years of his life, throughout his career and retirement, Raymond also served as a consultant and expert witness on film technology, copyright patent and archival services for numerous film and television studios.

STEVEN GLOEDE ’74 passed away peacefully in San Diego, CA, on April 2, 2019 after a long and courageous battle with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

Steve was born in Sharon, CT, to Thomas and Patricia Gloede. At the age of 8, Steve and his family moved to Yokohama, Japan, where his father worked with IBM. He attended ASIJ from 1971–72. His family returned to Connecticut in 1972 and Steve went on to attend Paul Smith’s College in Lake Placid, NY, and Western Connecticut State College, in Danbury, CT, studying forestry and botany. He was employed by

78

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Obituaries Hydranautics for almost 30 years, ultimately rising to Director of Manufacturing and Plant Manager. He enjoyed being outside, planting, pruning and maintaining his yard.

DOUGLAS ROBERT JOHNSON ’78 born on October 13, 1960 passed away on July 31, 2019. Doug completed his formative years abroad in Tokyo, graduating from The American School in Japan in 1978. He returned to the States for his freshman year in college at the University of California, San Diego before transferring to the Colorado College in Colorado Springs, CA. In 2004, Doug founded Catapult Growth Partners and served as managing director there for the rest of his career.

SAMUEL GROSSBERG ’03 passed away on April 27, 2019 surrounded by family, after a difficult year fighting an incurable cancer. Sam was born in Texas on July 21, 1985 but spent his early childhood years in New York City until his family moved to Israel in 1992.

He arrived in Japan in 2001 when his father was appointed a professor at Waseda University and entered ASIJ as a high school junior. Having played basketball from the age of 10, he joined the ASIJ JV (and later senior Varsity) basketball team. He was also a member of the football team, and competed in track and field. After graduating from ASIJ, Sam attended Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, doing a double major in philosophy and education. He worked for the Board of Jewish Education of Rhode Island, but returned to Israel to volunteer in the IDF as a soldier. When decommissioned he remained in Israel, working first in high tech, then in real estate, and finally in blockchain. In his final job he set up a call center in the Philippines where he eventually had two hundred employees under him. In 2018 he was diagnosed a rare T-cell lymphoma of the brain and central nervous system.

Although Sam wanted to wait until he had recovered enough for a big wedding, he got married to Shai, in a small ceremony on December 21, 2018. He will be missed by his wife, his parents Ken and Keiko, and his sister Anna Rose Taylor ’06.

ALUMNI AARON MOORE ’90 historian of modern Japan and East Asia and an associate professor of history at Arizona State University passed away on September 8, 2019. He was born on 9 August, 1972 on the naval base in Yokosuka, Japan, where his father, Stephen Moore was a teacher. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia and went on to complete his PhD at Cornell University in 2006. Aaron became a research associate at the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies at Harvard. He began teaching at MIT and Ohio University before moving on to Arizona State University in 2008 where he taught a range of courses. He had a love of travel and frequently travelled abroad to give lectures and further his knowledge in his dedicated field. He is survived by his parents and wife, Nila Bhattacharjya.

DONNA OETTING (FF ’71–’75) former nursery school and kindergarten teacher passed away on May 4, 2019 at the age of 72. Donna was born in Waynesville, MO and graduated from The University of Iowa with a BS in recreation.

She moved to Japan in 1971 accompanied by her husband and former faculty, Dennis (FF ’71–’75) Together they travelled the world while teaching and had four children that travelled with them.

Donna was known for her laughter, love of teaching and grand Shrove Tuesday Pancake Parties.

MIRIAM OLSON (AP ’66–’80) passed away on September 8, 2019 aged 90. Her three children and two grandchildren all attended ASIJ from ’70 to ’08, graduating almost 30 years apart. She is survived by her son Timothy ’73, two daughters Tami ’70 and Christina ’80 and grandchildren, Stephen, Christopher ’04 and Sean ’08.

GREG SYLVAN TANG ’67 passed away on May 30, 2019 in Cheboygan, MI, after a short battle with cancer. Born on August 11, 1948 in Berkeley, CA. Greg lived in Japan from 1950 to 1969 where he attended ASIJ, graduating in 1967. After

Obituaries arriving back in the States in 1967, Greg earned an engineering degree from Montana State in May of 1969. He then moved to Blaine, MN, and enrolled in a pre-architect course at the University of Minnesota. He also took courses at Lansing Community College from 1974–76 in hydraulics and electronics. Greg traveled back to Japan in March of 1970 and worked in the US Pavilion Space Exhibit at Expo ’70 in Osaka. He returned to the United States in September, later moving to Lansing, MI, where he accepted a manager position in the engineering department at Hartman-Fabco.

He retired in 2007 as a one-third partner and continued as a consultant until 2012. In his free time, Greg enjoyed Canadian fishing trips, and working on the lake property near Wolverine, MI.

BRIAN WEBER ’18 a biology major in his freshman year at Boston University, passed away on April 12, 2019. Brian was born in Singapore and attended ASIJ from 2006–12. He went on to attend high school at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts, where he was a Varsity athlete and an active contributor to a studentproduced website, The Tavern. According to his family, Brian was a people person and was always looking for ways to help people, and he will be sincerely missed.

CHARLES D. WINSLOW (AP ’81–’86) passed away on October 10, 2019 peacefully in his home in Columbus, OH. He was born on 13 July, 1935 in Philadelphia to Charlie and Betty Winslow. As an aggressive forward on his high school basketball team, Charles led his team to the state championship in 1957. Charles graduated from Dartmouth College in 1957 and was an officer in the US Navy earning an MBA in 1961. He met his wife, Nancy Shaw in 1955 and they were married in 1959. He went to work for Anderson Consulting, opening the Columbus consulting division in in 1967. He became a partner in 1970 and later moved to Tokyo, Japan to lead the Tokyo office where he worked for five years. As an active community member, he was chairman on the board of The American School in Japan where two of his sons, Jonathan Winslow ’83 and Samuel Winslow ’90 attended. He retired in 1995 as head of Accenture’s worldwide change management practise, spending his retirement actively; travelling and playing tennis. Charles divided his time between Vero Beach, FL, in winter, Frisco, CO, in fall and Columbus, OH, during summer. He is survived and missed by his four sons Charlie, Steve, Jon ’83 and Sam ’90 and wife, Nancy.

THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2019

79

The Big Short Big questions, Short answers

Joanne Harris-Rolls joined ASIJ in 2010 along with her husband Grant Rolls and their children Gregor ’23, Ella ’23 and Jackson ’27.

When she's not training in Nogawa Park or running marathons, she is part of the Elementary School student support team.

Where are you from?

I’m from the capital city of New Zealand, Wellington—“the best little capital in the world.” Although it can be a little windy!

love seeing the kids we’ve taught in elementary rise to become great adults.

As for my own kids, it’s about being part of something special, belonging to ASIJ.

What kind of student were you in school?

I was pretty outgoing and enjoyed being involved in most things, including a lot of sports. I was also very much a pleaser. I always followed the rules and tried to do the right thing. But I liked to have a good time too.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

Why did you choose to go into education?

When I first trained as a teacher it was all about the creatively that teaching lent itself to. In New Zealand, teachers teach all subjects. I would be teaching PE, art and music along with core subjects all in one day. Now I stay in education because, for me, it’s about helping children reach their full potential. It’s about teaching students that they don’t have to be the best—but more about becoming their best selves.

Seeing kids grow and learn and knowing that I’ve had a tiny part in that is the best feeling in the world.

What is your favorite thing about Japan?

I love everything about Japan. It’s been an amazingly safe and incredibly organized place to raise my three children. I love the outdoor lifestyle it offers allowing me to run and walk and hike up mountains and around lakes. The food is incredible—so much so we crave it as a family when we are not in Japan. I also love the traditions Japan holds so dear. The respect that the Japanese have for their families. I often find myself bowing to others when I am home in NZ. What is your favorite thing about ASIJ? ASIJ is an incredible school with wonderful people. It has been our “family” away from home, supporting us through the tough times, and being there to celebrate the great times. My children have only ever known ASIJ and love the traditions.

As a family, we love the graduation walk in the donut above all. As teachers, we

“Have you brushed your teeth?” and “Please tidy your room!”

Which talent would you most like to have?

I’m sure my family would agree that it would be for me to be able to sing in tune.

We play a lot of singing and music games when we are on family road trips, and when it’s my turn to sing the car is roaring with laughter at my tuneless attempts.

They are all just lucky they have lovely voices.

Who are your favorite writers?

There are so many great writers I could talk about. One that I have recently enjoyed since living in Japan is Haruki Murakami. I love reading his books which are based in Japan and knowing about the places he is writing about. I also recently read his What I Talk About When I Talk About Running which is a running memoir. It was pretty inspiring.

was diagnosed with cancer. He was one of the lucky ones and it was treated early.

Rather than sit back and let life pass him by, he took up road cycling. He now cycles hundreds of kilometers a week and goes to spin classes. He was recently one of the oldest men to cycle from Wellington to Auckland in a 5-day cycling race. I hope to still be going strong like my dad when I’m in my 70s!

When and where were you happiest?

Right here, right now! I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I have a truly amazing husband who supports and encourages me with everything I do. I have three beautiful children who make my heart swell with pride and wonderful friends who support my crazy. To top it off, I do a job I love at a school I love, in the most amazing country. I am super happy!

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

Sir Edmund Hilary was a household name growing up in New Zealand. It wasn’t until later on in life I realized the significance of his achievements.

Which living person do you most admire?

That’s easy—my dad. He’s been my number one role model my entire life. As a little girl, I used to go out and cheer him on when he was running marathons.

I guess that’s where I got my running bug from. Dad never gave up when things got tough. A few years back he

Illustration by Matthew Worsley 80

THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN

Doorstep access to Niseko’s world famous snow.

For some, it’s waking up each morning to beautiful Mt Yotei views. For others, it’s the Hokkaido inspired cuisine served each night by Chef Shinichi at An Dining. The relaxing traditional onsen is the reason for many. While some simply love the unforgettable personal service from the moment they arrive.

But for most, it’s all of this and more.

Japan’s Best Ski Boutique Hotel – Winner 2019.

www.kiniseko.com

Advancement Office The American School in Japan ASIJ / FBC USA 7055 Marcelle St Paramount CA 90723 Address Service Requested