PHOTO L to R: Linda Kawamoto Reid, Eiko Eby, Susanne Tabata, Lindsay Fong, Cathy Makihara, Mari Mikuni, & Ruth Coles. Photo by John Endo Greenaway.
By Susanne Tabata
As we wind down the year, and look back on 2021, we are grateful to all of you who worked with us to contact our survivors from coast to coast. We thank you for your dedication to our seniors, for spending hours and hours searching for survivors, and for developing proposals for projects which are meant to benefit their health and wellbeing. The Fund was always intended to make a difference in the lives of our survivors who need it most. We acknowledge this is difficult work.
We had an unexpected, very high demand for underserved grants and were able to issue cheques for up to $650 per individual applicant. We are reporting that the cheques have now been processed for the individual grants, and have been mailed. We hope this grant arrives in households by the end of the December.
During the past six months we have listened to our community and we have learned there is a great demand for services AND direct financial assistance for survivors whose lives were directly impacted by the actions of the BC Government 1942-1949. We realize this limited fund has come at a time when our issei and so many of our nisei are not here to receive this acknowledgment. We do this work in their memory and for those who are still with us, and because we believe that we can create a network of supports to make a positive difference in the lives of so many of our seniors.
We are saddened by the departure of more of our elders, whom this fund is meant to serve. We pass on our sincerest condolences to all families who are mourning the loss of a family member at this time. We also send our support to all families who are caring for family members. There is no quick fix to heal the injustices of the past, and hopefully this grant is the beginning of an expanded Survivors Fund.
Our office is still open so please contact us if you need to reach out. From all of us at the JC Survivors Health and Wellness Fund, we wish you a peaceful holiday season. See you in the New Year.
For any questions please contact the Project Office or Eiko Eby at eikoeby@nikkeishc.com or (250) 797-6300.