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$900,000 Awarded to Advance Programs Serving Japanese American and Japanese Older Adults throughout Southern California

Keiro® announced the recipients of its 2016 inaugural Grants Program cycle, with a total of $916,668 going to 44 local organizations providing sustainable programs representing a range of options that help Japanese American and Japanese older adults age well and age in place. Recognizing the impact that local organizations can have in enhancing the quality of senior life in our community, Keiro created the Grants Program to provide enhanced services and resources, and to foster innovation in the area of senior care and quality of life.

Keiro’s Grants Program invests in qualified non-profit organizations and groups through a competitive, community-based review process. In its inaugural cycle, the program funded projects ranging from program support, capital improvements, core operations, and capacity building. These projects received funding based on their alignment with Keiro’s strategies and goals; ability to address a pressing need or opportunity to serve older adults and caregivers; impact on the most vulnerable older adults in Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties; and cultural sensitivity unique to Japanese Americans and Japanese.

The following 44 organizations are the 2016 grant recipients, with funding ranging from $1,125 to $80,000:

  • Abide in Awareness
  • Alzheimer’s Greater Los Angeles
  • Center for Health Care Rights
  • Continuing Education for Nikkei Widowed
  • East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center
  • Faith United Methodist Church
  • Gardena Buddhist Church
  • Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute
  • Give Urban Farms
  • Go for Broke National Education Center
  • Happy Qi Gong
  • Japanese American Christian Chapel
  • Japanese American Cultural and Community Center
  • Japanese American National Museum
  • Japanese American Optimist Club
  • Japanese Christian Church Federation of Southern California
  • Kizuna
  • Little Tokyo Nutrition Services
  • Little Tokyo Service Center
  • Long Beach Japanese Cultural Center/ Long Beach Harbor Pioneer Project
  • Los Angeles Holiness Church
  • Los Angeles Hompa Hongwanji Buddhist Temple
  • Mission Valley Free Methodist Church
  • Montebello Plymouth Congregational Church
  • Nikkei Active Life Club USA
  • Nikkei Senior Gardens
  • Okinawa Association of America
  • Orange County Buddhist Church
  • Orange County Friendship Choir
  • Orange County Japanese American Association
  • Oxnard Buddhist Temple
  • Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment
  • Pacific Theatre Production Corp.
  • Pasadena Buddhist Temple
  • Pasadena Nikkei Seniors
  • San Fernando Valley Japanese American Community Center
  • San Gabriel Nikkei Senior Club
  • Senshin Buddhist Temple
  • Mary’s Episcopal Church
  • Union Church of Los Angeles
  • Visual Communications Media
  • West Covina Christian Church Harvesters Senior Ministry
  • Zenshuji Soto Mission

“Keiro is proud to partner with these diverse community organizations, supporting their commitment to serve Japanese American and Japanese older adults along with their caregivers,” said Leona Hiraoka, Keiro president and CEO. “We look forward to seeing the growth of these promising programs over the year to come, and welcome the impact that will have on their individual communities.”

The grant proposals were reviewed and evaluated by an independent community-based Grants Review Committee. The 13-member committee assessed each proposal, conducted site visits, deliberated on each project, and presented a final docket of recommended grants to the Keiro Board of Directors. The Grants Review Committee consisted of

  • Deborah Ching
  • Terrie Doizaki
  • Terry Hara
  • Ken Hayashi
  • Noelle Ito
  • Tomomi Kanemaru
  • Ken Kasamatsu
  • George Kikuta
  • Tomoko Nakajima
  • Rumiko Nakatani
  • Rick Oishi
  • Ray Shibata
  • Ron Takasugi

Noting the tremendous work of the Grants Review Committee, Gary Kawaguchi, chairman of Keiro’s Board of Directors said, “We want to sincerely thank the committee members for their months of detailed effort to make this inaugural cycle a success. These community leaders each brought a unique perspective to the review process which helped shape and strengthen the program.”

In the upcoming months, Keiro will open its 2017 Grants Program cycle to award support to qualified non-profit organizations that primarily serve Japanese American and Japanese older adults and caregivers in Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties. Information will be available at www.keiro.org/grants.

Keiro® is expanding its reach to broadly engage and support thousands of Japanese American and Japanese older adults throughout Los Angeles, Ventura, and Orange counties. Keiro provides services to older adults and caregivers, along with programs for residents of Keiro’s former facilities. For more information, go to keiro.org and follow @keiroliving.