August 8th 2021 O.A.

Lions Clubs International

July 24th was the Installations of Officers and Governors Gala of Lions Clubs International at a hotel in Montebello.

Lions Clubs International is a service organization founded in 1917.
There are 48,000 local clubs in more than 200 countries around the world with 1.4 million members.

There are 32 clubs around the outskirts of LA including Little Tokyo Lions Club. District 4-L1 supervises these clubs.

100 representatives from each club within the district attended the ceremony.
The oath started with their motto “We serve.”

Followed by the announcement of the new board members, and Trudy Nodohara became the new District Governor.

Trudy Nodohara has been working as a business consultant in Little Tokyo as well as running an entertainment business, and has been a part of the club for 28 years.

President Kaoru Kawata of Japanese Chamber of Commerce of SoCal and 3 others were introduced as new members of the Little Tokyo club.

Visas for Life

The California Legislature designated July 29th as Sugihara Visas Day to memorialize Chiune Sugihara for saving thousands of Jewish lives.

Sugihara was a vice consul for Japanese consulate in Lithuania during WWII.
He defied the orders of the Japanese government and issued transit visas to Jewish refugees that would allow them to pass through Japan and take refuge in other countries.

The visas were issued to more than 2,100 people and became known as “Visas for Life.”

July 29th is when Sugihara first issued the visa and California Senator Robert Hertzberg stated “I hope this day will remember and celebrate Sugihara’s great achievement” in his message.