We seek a U.S. commemorative postage stamp that would tell the inspiring story of these American World War II soldiers. Begun by two widows of these veterans and their friend in 2005, this continues to be a volunteer-led, grassroots effort by family and friends of the veterans.

Help today by signing the White House petition. It’s easy. Enter your name, email, and zip (optional). That’s it. The President can make the stamp happen. Tell him today.

100,000 for 100,000.  100,000 signers needed.  120,000 incarcerated in the internment camps (read story below).  We need 100,000 signers by March 18th to get this petition onto the President’s desk.

In honor of the 120,000 who were in the camps, we ask that at least 100,000 supporters of this cause to step forward to sign this petition. We especially ask anyone who has family or friends who served during World War II, and family or friends of those who were in the internment camps. Thank you, and please tell others to sign, too! Maybe people at your church or other organization would like to get involved. Continue reading 100K for 100K — Nisei Support Needed for Postage Stamp →

Orange County Register
Oct. 25, 2015
Updated Oct. 26, 2015 4:51 p.m.
By BROOKE EDWARDS STAGGS / STAFF WRITER

Kristin Pajares was working the snack bar at Tustin Lanes bowling alley in 1984 when 17-year-old Anthony Nitz walked in.

Nitz spied the beautiful girl handing french fries to a customer and became mesmerized. After a week of daily visits, he worked up the

nerve to slide a napkin with his phone number across the snack bar. Thinking it was trash, 18-year-old Pajares started to throw the napkin away until Nitz lunged to stop her.

“We spent the majority of the next year and a half at Tustin Lanes, whether it was working for me, bowling, eating or playing video games,” she recalls.

Continue reading Orange County’s fading bowling alley scene: Just 15 centers remain →

LA Times
June 16, 2015
Chris Nichols

Like drive-in theaters before them, the last of the larger-than-life classic 1950s bowling centers that once roamed Southern California are nearly extinct. The oversized thrills and colorful frills of Mission Hills Bowl in the San Fernando Valley, Friendly Hills Lanes in Whittier, and Wagon Wheel Bowl in Oxnard all went dark this month.

Crews quickly descended on the mid-century buildings to scavenge for valuables. At least the maple lanes from Mission Hills, originally designed by Vegas architect Martin Stern, Jr., will see more strikes at a bowling center in Vietnam. The Wagon Wheel was the last vestige of a once-thriving roadside amusement along the 101 that is now completely shuttered. Friendly Hills is a modern masterpiece from architects Powers, Daly, and DeRosa, who reinvented the bowling center after WWII. It featured a beauty parlor, coffee shop, and the Mayan Room lounge alongside the 32 lanes.

Continue reading Three Historic L.A. Bowling Alleys Go Dark →

BY MICHAEL J. MOONEY FROM D MAGAZINE JULY 2012

In a bowling alley one night, Bill Fong came so close to perfection that it nearly killed him.

When Bill Fong approaches the lane, 15-pound bowling ball in hand, he tries not to breathe. He tries not to think about not breathing. He wants his body to perform a series of complex movements that his muscles themselves have memorized. In short, he wants to become a robot.

Fong, 48 years old, 6 feet tall with broad shoulders, pulls the ball into his chest and does a quick shimmy with his hips. He swings the ball first backward, then forward, his arm a pendulum of kinetic energy, as he takes five measured steps toward the foul line. He releases the ball, and it glides across the oiled wooden planks like it’s floating, hydroplaning, spinning counterclockwise along a trajectory that seems to be taking it straight for the right-hand gutter. But as the ball nears the edge of the lane, it veers back toward the center, as if guided by remote control. The hook carries the ball back just in time. In a heartbeat, what was a wide, sneering mouth of pins is now—nothing.

He comes back to the table where his teammates are seated—they always sit and bowl in the same order—and they congratulate him the same way they have thousands of times over the last decade. But Fong looks displeased. His strike wasn’t good enough.

Continue reading THE MOST AMAZING BOWLING STORY EVER →

JANUARY 27, 2015
By J.K. YAMAMOTO, Rafu Staff Writer

As part of the 75^th anniversary celebration of the Nisei Week Japanese Festival, the Nisei Week Foundation held its first bowling tournament on Jan. 18 at the X Lanes in Little Tokyo with more than 200 people attending.

Co-chaired by Lauren Kinkade-Wong (2001 Nisei Week Queen) and Silvia Yoshimizu-Yee (2001 First Princess), the tournament was part of a series of Nisei Week events planned this year.

Proceeds from the tournament — more than $12,000 — will go to the Nisei Week Foundation and to an annual scholarship awarded by the Japanese American Women’s Giving Circle, a subcommittee of the foundation, to a young woman who has demonstrated a commitment to philanthropy and service for the Japanese American community.

Continue reading NISEI WEEK LETS THE GOOD TIMES ROLL →

(With contributions by Grant Sunoo, Gary Mayeda, Danny Molina, Jeff Shu-Ho Lane, Glen Kitayama, Emi Gusukuma, Mark Yoshida, Daren Mooko, Jenni Kuida, Maiya Kuida-Osumi, traci ishigo, and Ryan Yokota)