Our Bonenkai guests enjoyed a relaxing and festive evening at Heritage Hall at the Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church on December 8. The event featured delicious appetizers from Mei Japanese Restaurant, mochi from Cafe Mochiko, a performance of Japanese songs by the Sakura Ladies Chorus, and a trivia game featuring Japanese and American superhero-themed questions. (Thank you to Helen & Steve Rindsberg for creating this fun activity!)
We had a great turnout for last night’s Zoom webinar featuring samurai armor collector Gary Grose, with Cincinnati Asian Art Society President and JASGC Honorary Board Member Helen Rindsberg as host and moderator. JASGC Board Member and resident tech expert Steve Rindsberg provided behind-the-scenes PowerPoint and tech support.
Here are some participant comments:
“The Zoom program last evening was fantastic! Yuko and I both enjoyed it immensely. Yuko is an avid reader of books whose stories take place during the Warring States Era. She was in her element and glued along with me to our computer screen. Thank you for making this program possible!”
-Bob Lees, New Richmond, Ohio“That was a very interesting and enjoyable program. Helen, Gary and Steve did a great job!”
-David W. Cook, Honorary Consul of Japan in Columbus
(Cover image from the 2017 “Dressed to Kill” exhibition courtesy of the Cincinnati Art Museum)
Published in 2022 by the Japan America Society of Greater Cincinnati with assistance from REDI Cincinnati, the City of Mason Department of Economic Development, Northern Kentucky TRI-Ed, and MUFG. The only publication of its kind in the region.
provided by JP Okuda
I was born and raised in Okinawa, Japan and moved to America at the age of 15. I graduated high school in Birmingham, Alabam, and played two years on a full golf scholarship at Shelton State Community College (Tuscaloosa, Alabama). Highlights during my amateur career include being a member of the Division II National Golf Championship Team in 1999.
Golf! I fell in love with the game of golf from the day my dad took me to the driving range when I was 10 years old. Long story short, my dad attended a golf clinic back in Okinawa, 30+ years ago, and really liked the instructor’s philosophy. He somehow found a way to have me attend HS in the US and take private lessons under this golf instructor, all while I was only 15 years old. So, I said, “Why not? Let’s do it!”
I became a PGA Class A professional in 2012. It was probably one of the hardest things and biggest challenge I have had to overcome in my life. To be honest, the playing test was easiest for me. I had played so many junior /college tournaments that passing the skills test was easy. What was hard was the book/study /internship part of the program. To become a PGA Class A professional, you have to pass 3 levels of exam, and each level gets harder and harder. For each test, I had to travel to the PGA headquarters in Florida and stay for 5 days of seminars and testing. If I failed, I would need to wait 3 months before signing up to do it all over again.
Also, I became a father just before taking the first level exam, and also had a 2nd child just weeks before the final level; it was very stressful. But I am living proof that if you work very hard, small dreams will come true one day. But you really have to work hard…it is not easy.
My favorite part of the job is everyday meeting resort guests from different parts of the region and sometimes different states.
The most difficult is not being able to control the weather. Weather is very stressful; 100% of the time my business depends on what happens outside.
Anne Golden, JP Okuda, and Staff
Photo by David Bailey
It was a very challenging few years, but working together has made us stronger, and business is coming back, no problem. When there isn’t anything else you could do, there is always a round of golf available.
The course is always in pretty good shape and the staff is always available to ensure you have a great experience during your round of golf.
Sign up for lessons with a local PGA Professional, and of course I am happy to help!
Also, let the family get involved. The PGA Junior League is a fantastic program, especially for (beginner) kids.
JASGC member Denny Kato was interviewed on May 17 by WVXU’s Lucy May. After retiring from a career in restaurant management in 2014, Kato took a deep dive into his family’s history, including time spent during WWII with other Japanese-American families in an internment camp. Listen to the full interview here.
