This exhibition commemorates the 100th anniversary of the loyalty, dedication, courage, and commitment to a better Canada from the early community of Nikkei in Canada. May we always remember the bravery of our Nikkei veterans, the leadership of our community elders, and the lessons from the past that have shaped our present. May future generations benefit from their sacrifices, lest we forget.
We thank the following descendants of veteran families for loans and donations of artefacts and archival records: Esther Ayukawa, Tillie Gustafson, Chieko Inouye, Kelvin Inouye, Rob and Chris Inouye, Alfred Iwasaki, David Mitsui, George Shintani, Michiko Yano Shuttleworth, and Elsie Toguri. Thanks to Ken Noma who donated and loaned items from his personal collection, and to Mary Gray for the samurai armour.
Thank you to the Vancouver Japanese Language School for the loan of the Roll of Honour which was brought back to them by Sergeant Sainosuke Kubota in 1977, and to Sergeant Kubota who ensured the safety of these precious items through the trauma of forced dispersal and dispossession in the 1940s.
While we drew heavily from the Nikkei National Museum archives, we are indebted to the historical archives of the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto, the Japanese Canadian War Memorial committee, Library & Archives Canada, and the University of British Columbia's Rare Books & Special Collections.
Research for the exhibition was completed by Sherri Kajiwara, Linda Kawamoto Reid, Carolyn Nakagawa, Scott MacDonald, and Eiji Okawa. With special thanks to David Brownstein of UBC’s Geography 429 course, David Mitsui, Susan Yatabe, and to important written sources by Ken Adachi, Roy Ito, and Kaye Kishibe.
Special thanks to the creative talents of Zoe Garred of Fleet Objects for exhibit design and John Endo Greenaway for graphic design, and Yvonne Kong for digital exhibit artefact photography.
Exhibition elements by East Van Graphics, Kikori Japanese Antiques, and PacBlue.
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