Achievements for Japan

(1) Achievements as the President of the Japanese American Association of New York
Since joining the Japanese American Association (JAA) of New York in 1988, he has made use of his expertise as a lawyer to contribute to the social welfare, education and culture of Japanese and Japanese American residents in New York State, and to the goodwill between Japan and the United States. He has been active in the Association's activities and has been at the heart of its operations as a Director, Vice President, President and Honorary President of JAA for over 25 years.

In 1994, he set up free legal counseling services as part of the Association's activities, making use of his professional knowledge as a lawyer, providing legal counsel in areas that were difficult for Japanese and Japanese Americans to understand; mainly on immigration law and estate-planning. In addition, he has contributed to the enhancement of the welfare of the Japanese and Japanese American community, such as by assisting in the support of procedures for cases in which Japanese or Japanese Americans with no relatives died suddenly or when the surviving family members remain in Japan.

Immediately after the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, he organized a variety of support measures as Chairman of JAA, such as the establishment of a relief fund, taking initiative to raise funds, and donating to the affected areas. In addition to vigorously providing support for the area, JAA has continued to support the reconstruction of the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake by collaborating with other organizations that have also been supporting the rebuilding of these areas. In 2014, by his proposal, together with a former professional baseball manager, Bobby Valentine, they created a baseball team of 15-year-old boy baseball players from the east coast of the United States to be sent to Japan to play friendship games with youth baseball teams in Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima. Organizing these events, to convey the feelings of Japanese and Japanese American people in New York who supported the reconstruction of Tohoku, JAA has continued to support those in the disaster areas for a long time.

When Hurricane Sandy struck New York in October of 2012, he worked with a volunteer group to establish a relief fund to support the victims and called on members of JAA to donate clothing and volunteer in activities to clean damaged houses. This contributed to the promotion of friendly relations with New York citizens and improvement of the status of Japanese Americans in the region by actively providing various kinds of support not only to Japanese Americans but also to the overall areas affected by this natural disaster.

(2) Achievements through other organizations such as the U.S.-Japan Council
In addition to JAA activities, he had been involved in important decision-making matters in terms of the management of the U.S.-Japan Council, which contributes to strengthening Japan-U.S. relations by establishing opportunities for exchanges between Japan and the United States for six years, the maximum term limit for a Director of the organization and Vice-Chair in charge of raising funds and advancing public relations, taking advantage of his experience as a lawyer. As a Japanese American with a unique connection with Japan, he actively communicated with many companies and individuals in both Japan and the United States to stress the importance of promoting Japan-U.S. relations and established various cooperative relationships to promote bilateral relations, contributing to funding and human resource discoveries that are essential to the activities of the organization. In these ways, supporting a wide range of exchange programs between Japan and the United States, he contributed to the strengthening of economic relations, cultural exchange and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States through the establishment of this social network, and by nurturing and interacting with the next generation of Japanese and American leaders as a bridge between the two countries.

During his term of office as a Director of the U.S.-Japan Council, and after taking office as a Director of the U.S.-Japan Council (Japan) in 2018, he has traveled very frequently between Japan and the U.S. to form a close network between both countries. He has encouraged active interactions such as the TOMODACHI Initiative, which aims to foster the next generation of leaders in Japan and the United States through energetic activities and by attending events hosted by the U.S.-Japan Council (Japan) held in Japan despite the fact that he lives in New York. He is committed to the further development of the program and contributes to deepening and promoting goodwill and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States.

In the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games held in Nagano Prefecture in Japan, he served on its Advisory Board and helped raise funds and awareness for the Games. This also contributed to the deepening of the bonds of friendship between athletes from Japan and various countries participating in the Special Olympics.

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対日功績

（１）ニューヨーク日系人会会長、役員としての功績
同人は、昭和６３年にニューヨーク日系人会に入会以来、法律家としての専門的知見を活かし、ニューヨーク州に在住する日本人・日系人の社会福祉、教育・文化の向上、日米親善に資する同会の活動に積極的に取り組み、およそ２５年の間、同会の理事，副会長，会長として、同会運営の中核を担ってきた。
同人は、平成６年、同会の活動の一環として無料の法律相談室を立ち上げ、生業である弁護士としての知見を生かし、移民法や遺言を中心とした法律相談を行い、個人では手続の理解等が難しい分野において日本人・日系人に対して法律的側面からの支援を行った。また、身寄りのない日系人等が突然逝去した際や、同家族が日本に残っている場合の手続等も献身的に支援するなど、日本人・日系人社会の福祉充実に貢献してきた。
同会会長在任中の平成２３年３月に日本で発災した東日本大震災直後から、救援基金を設立し率先して募金活動を行い、被災地に寄付を行うなど、各種支援策を取りまとめ、被災地支援を精力的に実施したほか、その後も被災地の復興支援活動を行う団体とも協力するなどして、継続的に東日本大震災被災地の復興支援を行っている。平成２６年には、同人のイニシアチブにより、ボビー・バレンタイン監督とともに、米国東海岸地区から１５歳の少年野球選手を集めた野球チームを日本に送り、宮城、岩手、福島の野球チームと親善試合を行うイベントを実現するなど、ニューヨークの日系人・日本人が東北の復興を見守っていることを体現し、息の長い被災地支援を続けている。
平成２４年１０月にハリケーン・サンディがニューヨークを襲った際には、ボランティア団体と連携しながら、被災者支援のための救援基金の設立に尽力するとともに、同日系人会会員に対し衣類の寄付や被災家屋の掃除のボランティア活動を呼びかけるなど、日系人のみならず広く被災地域に対する各種支援を積極的に実施することにより､当地における日系人の地位向上とニューヨーク市民との友好関係の促進に貢献した。

（２）米日カウンシル等その他の団体活動を通じた功績
同人は、ニューヨーク日系人会における活動のほか、日米の交流の場を設けることにより日米関係の強化に貢献している米日カウンシルの理事、資金調達や広報を担当する副理事長として、同団体役員の任期上限である６年間にわたり、弁護士としての知見を生かしてその運営上の重要事項の決定に携わったほか、日本との独特の繋がりを持つ日系アメリカ人のリーダーの一人として、自ら日米両国の多くの企業や個人と積極的に交流して日米関係促進の重要性を訴え、日米交流促進のために多様な協力関係を構築し、同団体の活動に不可欠な資金調達や人材発掘の面で貢献した。このような活動を通じて幅広い日米の交流プログラムを支えることにより日米の次世代リーダーの育成や交流をはかる等、日本人、日系アメリカ人、アメリカ人との間の架け橋となり、様々な分野における人的ネットワークの構築による日米の経済関係強化、文化交流，相互理解の促進に寄与した。
米日カウンシルの役員としての任期満了後、平成３０年に公益財団法人米日カウンシル－ジャパンの理事に就任した後も、頻繁に日米間を行き来して日米両国でのネットワーク形成のために精力的に活動したり、ニューヨーク在住であるが日本で開催される米日カウンシル－ジャパン主催行事にも出席する等して、引き続き、日米の次世代のリーダー育成を目指すトモダチ・イニシアティブ等の交流プログラムのさらなる発展のために尽力し、日米の親善と相互理解の深化・促進のために貢献している。
平成１７年に長野県で開催されたスペシャルオリンピックス冬季世界大会の開催にあたっては、同大会理事として開催資金を募るとともに同大会の周知を図り、大会開催に貢献した。また、これによりスペシャルオリンピックに参加した各国のアスリート等と日本との友好の絆を深めることに寄与した。

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