2008 Camp Musubi Registration Opens
Saturday, May 10, 2008

The annual heritage experience event to be held on Aug. 18-22 in Little Tokyo.

Kids participating in one of the many fun activities at the 2007 Camp Musubi.

“Camp Musubi: a Japanese American Heritage Experience,” will hold its sixth annual camp on Aug. 18-22 in Little To­kyo. It will be based at Centenary United Methodist Church and is sponsored by Ties that Bind, a collaboration of community organizations and individuals interested in preserving the Japanese American commu­nity. Co-sponsors include the Little Tokyo Service Center, and the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center. The main goal of the camp is to spark interest and gain awareness of the Japanese American culture and community through hands-on experience and interaction with people in the community.

Guided by college-aged students and community “experts”, each day will cover various themes such as Nikkei heritage, Japanese American Culture, community life and contemporary issues. Activities differ from the previous years and will include a combination of cultural experiences, games and field trips. Some activities will include learning about family names and mons (fam­ily crests), creating a Little Tokyo scavenger hunt video, making ikebana arrangements, and going to House Foods in Garden Grove to see how tofu is made.

There will also be a variety of com­munity group representatives and Japa­nese Americans in various professions that will speak to the group throughout the week. This year, there will be six college students from a variety of cam­puses to help facilitate the activities to the youth.

Camp Musubi will be held on Aug. 18-22 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Cente­nary United Methodist Church in Little Tokyo. The cost is $200 for Early Bird Registration (until 5/14) per person and $225 for regular registration.

The camp is open to middle school-aged students (entering 6th, 7th, or 8th grade). For info go to www.campmusubi.org or email campmusubi@gmail.com.