An Okinawan Earth Day
By RYOKO OHNISHI
RAFU CONTRIBUTOR
Saturday, April 26, 2008

OAA performs to increase awareness of the CSUDH Japanese Garden.

Photo by RYOKO OHNISHI
From left, Naomi Moy, Yoshimichi Shinjo, Tsuruko Sadoyama, Itsumi Jacomo, Katsuko Teruya, Shizue Maleport, Harumi Wehner, Bill Ota, and Haruo Yamashiro and others pose in the CSUDH Japanese Garden.

As part of Earth Day festivities at California State University Domin­guez Hills, a group of Okinawa As­sociation of America members per­formed Okinawa minyo (folk songs) and danced on Tuesday to celebrate the school’s Japanese Garden. Efforts are underway to restore the CSUDH Japanese Garden.

The group performed six songs and dances accompanied by sanshin (three string guitar) and koto (Japa­nese harp) instruments, which was enjoyed by an audience which included tod­dlers from the Child Develop­ment Center on campus.

The Japa­nese Garden, “Shinwa-en” was built in 1978 with la­bor and mate­rial donated by local Japanese American com­munities such as Gardena Valley Garden­ers Association, the Pacific Coast, Los Angeles/San Gabriel Valley chapters of the California Landscape Contractors As­sociation, and the Centinela chapter of the California Association of Nurserymen.

It took them eight months to com­plete. The designer of the garden, Haruo Yamashiro said, “It is great to see the Okinawan dance on campus enjoyed by all.” The chair of the “Friends of the Japanese Garden,” Thomas Philo said, “We are planning to restore the garden in the near future, and this is a kick-off opportunity.”