Texas Hold 'Em Poker Tournament Fundraiser Saturday, April 21, 2012

2:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Net proceeds from the event will be used to provide scholarships for outstanding students in the Bay Area. Novice poker players are welcome. We will be distributing cheat sheets and explaining the rules before the tournament.

Food and drinks will be served, and there will be a fun raffle after the tournament.

The top five tournament players will receive prizes.

More information (PDF)


Past Events

Sakura Kai Health Fair Saturday, May 1, 2010

8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m

El Cerrito Open House Senior Center
6500 Stockton Ave.
El Cerrito, CA 94539

Last year, there were 70 seniors in the East Bay who were able to attend the health fair and were provided serveral health screening. If you are a senior, you are more than welcome to come and access the following services:

Volunteers are needed to help set up the health fair starting at 7:30 a.m. and if possible, assist in being at one of the screening stations. No medical experience is necessary while at the booths. The organizers are also looking for translators. Lunch will be provided.

If you are interested in volunteering, attending or taking part in the screening, please contact Tomoko Roudebush at (925) 817-8177 or She will be volunteering at the event and looks forward to seeing you there while giving back to our community!

For more questions about the health fair, please contact Kimi Honda at (510) 524-6338.

California Proposition 8 November 4, 2008

California Proposition 8 is perhaps the most controversial measure on the November 4 ballot. It would amend the state Constitution to limit marriage to a man and woman only. It is designed to overrule the California Supreme Court ruling extending marriage rights to homosexuals.

We offer the following memorandum from Morris Thurston in an attempt to present both sides of the Proposition 8 discussion.

Dust Storm February 16, 2008

A dust storm headed for the Concord Senior Center on Saturday, February 16, 2008. There was no need to panic, though, because the storm happened to be Rick Foster's one-man play called "Dust Storm."

The play is about art and survival in a time of xenophobia and tells the story of the WWII internment of Japanese Americans. Actor Zachary Drake is Seiji, a Berkeley High School student radicalized by his internment experience. Paintings by famed artist Chiura Obata enhanced the scenes Seiji describes. Obata was an art professor at the University of California, Berkeley when the U.S. was drawn to war. He and his family were relocated to an internment camp in the barren Utah desert where dust storms were common.

The Concord Senior Center and the Diablo Valley Chapter of JACL (Japanese American Citizens League) co-hosted the play attended by almost 200 people. "The timing of the play is significant," says Jack Nakashima, a Diablo Valley JACL member. "The riveting and fast-paced play serves to commemorate the February 1942 signing of Executive Order 9066 which authorized the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans."

In addition to the play, a lively Japanese Minyo (folk) dance group from Hawaii performed after "Dust Storm."

A portion of the event's proceeds benefited the Concord Senior Center's scholarship program. "The Center offers enriching educational and specialized instructional classes in addition to day trips for seniors," says Avis Connolly, Concord Senior Center Program Manager.

Only The Brave March 1, 2008

"Only the Brave" is a searing portrait of war and prejudice. This movie takes you on a haunting journey into the hearts and minds of the Japanese-American 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team and their families during WW II.

Members of the 100th/442nd RCT volunteered from the fields of Hawaii and the internment camps on the mainland to become, the most decorated United States Army unit of its size. This movie tells of their most famous exploit as they break through German forces in southern France suffering over 800 casualties to save 211 soldiers of the Texas "Lost Battalion."

Written, produced, and directed by Lane Nishikawa, it stars Lane Nishikawa, Jason Scott Lee, Mark Dacascos, Yuji Okumoto, Tamlyn Tomita, Jeff Fahey, and Pat Noriyuki Morita.

The Diablo Valley JACL joined forces with Mission From Buddha Productions LLC and KYOCERA Corporation to bring this educational and emotion-filled movie to the San Francisco East Bay on March 1, 2008, in The Auctions By The Bay Theater. The theater is located in the former Alameda Naval Air Station movie house that has been transformed into an exciting, opulent, and highly comfortable venue.

Before the movie, writer, producer, director, and actor Lane Nishikawa gave a short talk about the movie. After the movie, Lane, co-producers Eric Hayashi and Jay Kowai and actor Yuji Okumoto answered questions and signed autographs.

Salute to Our Veterans Sunday, August 12, 2007

The Diablo Valley JACL supported the "Salute to Our Veterans" event aboard the USS Hornet in Alameda, CA.

The Northern California, Western Nevada District of the JACL honored the men and women who served during WWII or Korean Conflict, including Military Intelligence Service (MIS), 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (100th/442nd), Army Nurse Corps, and Merchant Marine.

The USS Hornet is located at 707 W. Hornet Avenue, Pier 3, Alameda Point in Alameda.  Parking is free and handicap accessible.

30th Anniversary September 2007

The Diablo Valley JACL celebrated its 30th anniversary in September 2007