Contact Us  Subscribe  COUPONS 
Back to the top
What’s Happening at the JCCH

JCCH Scholarship Program

Do you know any undergraduate junior or senior students enrolled at the
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa or West Oʻahu? They may be eligible to apply for our 2026 scholarship, an opportunity generously supported by the Sekiya of Fukuoka / Hawaii Endowment Fund. Please review our additional program qualifications here.

Learn More

Apply by Friday, December 19, 2025, at 11:59 PM HST



RSVP Soon for Our Annual Membership Meeting!

JCCH members recently received an invitation to RSVP for our Annual Membership Meeting. This year's meeting will feature a special panel discussion with Ann Teranishi, President and Chief Executive Officer of American Savings Bank, and Logan Narikawa, President of JACL Honolulu Chapter, moderated by mission partner Mariko Miho. Through personal storytelling and dialogue, panelists will share how they’ve navigated challenges, preserved their cultural roots, created spaces of resilience and pride, and fostered connections that strengthen the broader community.

Interested in attending, but not a member? You may sign up or renew your membership at bit.ly/jcchmember. Registration ends tomorrow, September 5, 2025.

Learn More

Saturday, September 20, 2025 | 9:00 - 10:30 AM

Save the Date: Give Aloha

This September, your gift to the JCCH can make a powerful impact through
Give Aloha, Foodland’s Annual Community Matching Gifts program. Visit any Foodland, Sack N Save, or Foodland Farms checkout with your Maikaʻi card (or phone number), and tell the cashier our organization name (or code 77214) along with your donation amount (up to $249). 100% of your gift will be donated to our nonprofit organization, and Foodland will also match a portion of your contribution. Please join us in support of our community programs and educational resources!

Learn More

September 1 - 30, 2025



感謝 - With Gratitude




JCCH Historical Gallery Visit

Last Friday, we welcomed the
Okinawa Prefectural Government for a tour of the Okage Sama De Historical Gallery. We extend our gratitude to this group for visiting the Center to learn about the history of Japanese Americans in Hawaiʻi.
 
Community Announcements




Witness to History: A Testimony With a Hiroshima Survivor

In partnership with the
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, the Battleship Missouri Memorial presents Mo-Joe featuring Hiroshima survivor Keiko Ogura. Hear a first-hand account of survival, resilience, and the urgent call for peace. Tickets are available online for this free virtual Zoom event.

Learn More

Wednesday, September 10, 2025
3:00 PM HST
 




Empty Bowl Hawai‘i 2025

Empty Bowl Hawaiʻi brings together Chef Hui, Aloha Harvest, and the Hawaii Potters’ Guild in collaboration to support food security efforts. This one-of-a-kind event transforms empty bowls into vessels of hope and connection, bringing together thousands of handcrafted bowls and dishes prepared by Hawaiʻi’s most talented chefs. Early bird tickets are available until Sunday, September 7, 2025.

Learn More

Saturday, September 27, 2025 | 6:00 - 9:00 PM
 




Let’s Make Hiya Zomen (Cold Somen)!

Muriel's Mainichi Cooking presented by Hawaiʻi Gas is a new JCCH video series inspired by Muriel Miura’s mainichi まいにち (everyday) recipes. Widely recognized as the face of The Gas Company (now known as Hawaiʻi Gas), Muriel gained popularity through classes, demonstrations, conferences, cooking shows, pamphlets, and cookbooks.

Watch Episode 2

Episodes will be released on Instagram every fourth Friday of the month.

View Recipe
 
Keiro no Hi - Mahalo to Our Kūpuna

Keiro no Hi, a Japanese public holiday honoring senior citizens, falls on the third Monday of September each year. To commemorate this special day, we invite kūpuna ages 60 years and older to join us for a half-day of free, informative, and interactive workshops at the JCCH.

Registration is required to attend. Space is limited.

Learn More

Tuesday, September 16, 2025
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM




 
JCCH Annual Membership Meeting

Are you a
JCCH member? We recently emailed our members an invitation to RSVP for the 2025 JCCH Annual Membership Meeting, an opportunity to learn about our fiscal year results and upcoming initiatives from the Chair of the Board and JCCH staff. This year’s event will feature a special panel discussion with Ann Teranishi, President and Chief Executive Officer of American Savings Bank, and Logan Narikawa, JACL Honolulu President, moderated by Mariko Miho. Interested in attending, but not a member? You may sign up or renew your membership at bit.ly/jcchmember.

Learn More

Saturday, September 20, 2025 | 9:00 - 10:30 AM
 




JCCH Featured Ikebana

Each week, our
ikebana volunteers generously donate an arrangement to display in our administrative office lobby. We hope you enjoy this special design by:

May Hiraoka-Tomita, Ikenobo
 
感謝 - With Gratitude




A Resilient Spirit: The Voice of Hawaiʻi’s Internees Event

Mahalo to everyone who joined us in person and online for our talk story and book signing event hosted in honor of the reprinting of
A Resilient Spirit: The Voice of Hawaiʻi’s Internees. This past Saturday, editors Claire Sato and Violet Harada shared their inspiration for publishing this book, along with a reading of excerpts of incarceree experiences. If you missed the event, we encourage you to watch the live stream recording on YouTube. Books are available for purchase at the JCCH Gift Shop.
 
Community Announcements
A Time of Memory, Lament, and Rededication

As the 2025 Obon season draws to a close, we would like to share this blog post by
Reverend Blayne Higa of the Kona Hongwanji Buddhist Temple. We are reminded of how Obon is a time to reflect on the values passed down from our ancestors and a time to think about how we incorporate these values in our own lives. Read the full post here.
 




Harvest Moon Festival

Join the
3rd Annual Harvest Moon Festival at Hawaii’s Plantation Village, a celebration featuring entertainment, cultural foods, genealogy, kids’ activities, and more. Admission is free.

Learn More

Saturday, September 6, 2025
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
 

Support the JCCH



















Copyright (C) 2025 Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaiʻi. All rights reserved.


Back to the top

The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i (JCCH), a non-profit organization, strives to share the history, heritage and culture of the evolving Japanese American experience in Hawai‘i. Located at 2454 South Beretania Street in Mō‘ili‘ili, the Cultural Center features a Community and Historical Gallery, Resource Center, Kenshikan martial arts dōjō, Seikōan Japanese teahouse and Gift Shop. The Cultural Center presents various programs, festivals and exhibitions throughout the year.

Motto

Honoring our heritage. Embracing our diversity. Sharing our future.

Vision

We aspire to co-create a society where a deeper knowledge of one's heritage and a profound understanding of oneself will enable enlightened connections among all people.

Mission Statement

To be a vibrant resource, strengthening our diverse community by educating present and future generations in the evolving Japanese American experience in Hawai‘i. We do this through relevant programming, meaningful community service and innovative partnerships that enhance the understanding and celebration of our heritage, culture and love of the land. To guide us in this work we draw from the values found in our Japanese American traditions and the spirit of Aloha.

History

The seeds of thought and planning which had since developed into the solid concrete of Phase I and the working committees of the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i were sown over two generations ago. Minds and hearts of Issei and Nisei (first and second generations) forebearers set themselves to the tasks of survival, later to national heroism, and later still to the responsibility of restoring the concept of cultural pride in themselves and their community. Emotions generated by the Kanyaku Imin (125 Years of Japanese In Hawai‘i) celebration in February of 1985 spurred the devotion of major Japanese groups in the community to initially conceptualize the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai'i.

In 1986, The Honolulu Japanese Chamber of Commerce (HJCC) initiated the Japan-Hawaii Cultural Center project, "The Dream," for the purpose of bringing together related organizations in Hawai‘i to work in a common effort to preserve the legacy and history of the pioneers who came to Hawaii from Japan, and whose sacrifices and contributions made it possible for the younger generations to become integral members of American society. It was planned to be a legacy where future members of our community could look back and be fully conscious of their roots. The Center would also foster relations by promoting harmony and mutual understanding between Japan, Hawai‘i, and the United States.

The Honolulu Japanese Chamber of Commerce was willing to accept the enormous responsibility of immortalizing and cultivating the legacy of the Japanese in Hawai‘i by making a commitment to plant and nourish the seedling. Many community organizations supported the creation of a Japanese cultural center, as indicated by a survey to assess the need and expectations for a center.

Courses of action plans were implemented to create Ad Hoc Committees composed of the various Japan related organizations, and to organize a fund-raising organization to raise funds from the community within the State of Hawai‘i as well as in Japan. Committees set in motion to carefully plan, develop, and research in establishing the Cultural Center. The inception of some committees were: Steering, Planning, Public Relations, Historical Research Program, Program, Membership and Property Management. A schedule of "Milestone" tasks for these committees were implemented to prepare for the tremendous work that lay ahead in the formation of the Cultural Center.

On May, 28, 1987, the birth of a new direction and a new step toward the dreams of our forefathers emerged as the Cultural Center was incorporated under the laws of the State of Hawai‘i as a non-profit corporation to develop, own, maintain, and operate a Japanese cultural center in Hawai‘i. As an independent entity, the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i would play a most crucial role in perpetuating the cultural heritage we inherited from our Issei forefathers into the lifestyles and values of our children's children.

Revamped, Revved and Ready... the Cultural Center Boards and staff moves forward with great aspirations

The Board of Directors consists of 15 community leaders from O‘ahu, Maui, Kaua‘i and Hawai‘i counties who lead the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i by establishing policies and strategic direction. Each Director either chairs and /or is a member of the Executive Committee, Governance Committee, Membership Development Committee, Fundraising Committee, Facilities & Operations Committee, and Budget & Finance Committee. The Board members are elected by the membership as a whole.

The Board of Governors currently has forty (40) members who advise and make recommendations to the Board of Directors, and oversee the implementation of programs and activities of the Cultural Center. The Board of Governors also assist and maintain the fiscal well-being of the Center by supporting its fundraising activities. The Board of Governors are appointed by the Board of Directors.

The staff of nine full-time and two part-time employees is led by the President & Executive Director who administers the day-to-day operations of the Cultural Center.

The Board of Directors, Board of Governors and the staff, and volunteers work in unison to carry out the many exciting plans at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i. When put together these individuals, though all unique in their background, create a dynamic, capable and passionate group who are dedicated to the Cultural Center's mission of sharing the history, heritage and culture of the evolving Japanese American experience in Hawai‘i.

HOURS

Historical Gallery & Gift Shop: Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Resource Center: By Appointment Only

Administrative Office: By Appointment Only


Like Our Facebook

  • RELATED LINKS
  • Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i (JCCH)
    Honoring our heritage. Embracing our dirversity. Sharing our future. The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i (JCCH), a non-profit organization, strives to share the history, heritage and culture of the evolving Japanese American experience in Hawai‘i.
  • Kaimuki Hawaii.Com Home Page
    View our featured events, news, businesses and primary links on our home page.
  • Featured Sponsors Offers
    Great offers from our sponsors who support the Kaimuki Honolulu, Hawaii community. More...
  • Kaimuki Hawaii Directory
    View Kaimuki, Hawaii primary directories. businesses, non profits, public, government and jobs.
  • Calendar
    Check out things to do in Kaimuki on the calendar of events.
  • News
    Keep up with the latest news and happenings in your Kaimuki community.
  • Kaimuki Hawaii Featured Pages
    View our directory of feature pages showcasing all the great things Kaimuki, Honolulu, Hawaii has to offer. Go Green in Kaimuki, restaurants, shopping, WiFi Hot Spots, fitness, health, real estate, home and garden, 80+ more directories... More...

Please send questions about this website to
Copyright© 2005 - 2025 KaimukiHawaii.com. All rights reserved.
Terms of Use / Legal Disclaimer / Privacy Statement
Site Designed and Managed by MacBusiness Consulting