Annual Gala Reimagined and Silent Auction

November 14, 2020

On November 14, 2020, for the first time, the Japan-America Society of Hawaii (JASH) broadcast its 44th Annual Gala Reimagined & Silent Auction to a worldwide audience. Partnering with Hawaii News Now, the Gala was televised on KHNL and simultaneously live streamed on HawaiiNewsNow.com and our JASH YouTube channel. Our theme for this year was Mirai “Our New Future,” which we thought appropriate as we take on this unpredictable time and reimagine the ways that we can operate as a community organization. The 2020 Bridge Award was presented to the Sony Corporation for their work with Hawaii’s women, children, youth and impoverished over the past 21 years through the Sony Open in Hawaii and the related Friends of Hawaii Charities. Accepting the award on behalf of the Sony Corporation was Mr. Hiroshi Kawano, Senior Vice President and Representative Director and Deputy President and President of the Consumer & Professional Business Sector of Sony Imaging Products & Solutions Inc. We were also honored to welcome Mr. Corbett Kalama as our keynote speaker. Mr. Kalama is the Executive Vice President of the Weinberg Foundation’s Hawaii office and President of Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc.

JASH wishes to express our sincere appreciation to our silent auction donors for helping to make the online auction a success! In appreciation to Mr. Kalama and Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc., JASH is pleased to donate 10% of the net proceeds from the 2020 JASH Silent Auction to Sutter Health Kahi Mohala.

We’d like to extend our heartfelt appreciation to all sponsors, dinner patrons, silent auction patrons, donors, and volunteers who made our event a great success.

If you missed the event CLICK HERE to view the full program on our YouTube channel.

Please join JASH in continuing our important work of promoting understanding and friendship between the people of Japan and Hawaii. Now more than ever, it is critical for organizations such as JASH to build and maintain bridges between the U.S. and Japan through the unique perspective of Hawaii. In supporting international and cross-cultural understanding and friendship, our organization promotes diversity and contributes to building a peaceful and harmonious world. Mahalo nui loa, dōmo arigatō gozaimasu, and thank you for continuing to support our efforts to understand and appreciate different perspectives.