Volunteer opportunity with the Chicago Japanese American Council!

We are excited to announce that the Japan Festival will be held for the first time since 2019 on Saturday, August 19th at the Chicago Cultural Center!

We are currently looking for volunteers who will make a wonderful team for a successful event by offering your help to assist attendees at the festival as well as assisting performers, exhibitors, and vendors!

Currently, volunteers will be provided with a food ticket and water. Volunteers will be asked to participate for the entirety of the event from as early as 8 AM to 5 PM - times depending on the duty you are assigned.

You can sign-up electronically by selecting the following link and submitting our volunteer registration. Once the linked page loads, you can enter the form by entering in the following credentials: Username: volunteer | Password: JFest23! . Once the credentials have been entered, the Volunteer Registration form will load.

Closer to the date, we will contact you by e-mail prior to the event with more details.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, you can reach out to Caleb Fair at calebfair@outlook.com .

Thank you for your participation!

J-Fest flyer 23.pdf

Download PDF • 904KB

Ikebana Walk with the Japanese Culture Center in Chicago

The Japanese Culture Center, in partnership with the Lakeview Roscoe Village Chamber of Commerce and Japanese Arts Foundation, is hosting an Ikebana Walking Exhibition July 8th and 9th in the Southport Corridor with Ikebana instructors, artists, and students will install flower arrangements from two different schools of Ikebana taught at the center; Ikenobo and Ohara Ryu. In addition, there will be Ikebana themed, avant-garde Japanese calligraphy and origami flower arrangements on display at some participating locations.

This event is free of charge. See details here!

Get to Know Our Officers - Featuring Our Activities Coordinator, Samantha Sodetz!

We would like to welcome Samantha Sodetz to the 2023-2024 JETAA Chicago Board as our Activities Coordinator! Take a look below at Sam's officer profile to learn about her motivations, values and goals.

Our Activities Coordinator, Samantha Sodetz (she/her), was a CIR in Kagoshima from 2018-2019.

Tell us more about your JET experience.

Samantha worked as a Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) in southern Kagoshima, where she coordinated high school exchange programs, taught English, planned cultural events, and translated/interpreted Japanese to English as needed. When Samantha wasn’t in the office, she enjoyed the onsen of Kyushu, mountain climbing, forest hiking, and swimming in the Pacific Ocean.

When did you join/how long have you been on the JETAA Board? What positions have you held?

Activities Coordinator, 2023 —

What inspired you to step up as a leader and join the JETAA Chicago Board?

Want to continue contributing to US/Japan grassroots understanding and bring members of this community together.

Describe your officer duties and what you are looking forward to in regard to your responsibilities.

New to the role, excited to start!

What could be a healthy and/or needed culture add to JETAA Chicago?

I think the survival series is one of the most successful programs I’ve seen from this group, so more enrichment of this program (and similar programs) would be great.

What is one goal you would like to accomplish as an officer of JETAA Chicago, or something that you are looking forward to being a part of?

Just starting!

For you, what sparks joy?

- Green forests

- The ocean

- Caffeine

- Florals

- Art

What is your favorite Japanese "thing" near where you live now (and/or in the Midwest)?

I enjoy Japanese city pop on vinyl, which is occasionally hosted live in local venues by a local DJ.

Connect with Sam via LinkedIn; Instagram; or email!