About Sakura Foundation

PRESERVING OUR JAPANESE and JAPANESE AMERICAN HERITAGE

The mission of Sakura Foundation is to celebrate and share Japanese and Japanese American culture and heritage in order to promote a more compassionate, resilient, & equitable society.

We live our mission through our programming:

  • Mirai Generations Leadership Program for young adults
  • Chibi no Gakkō for 1-8 grade students, with mentorship opportunities for High Schoolers
  • Annual Cherry Blossom Festival
  • Community Grants
  • Scholarships for graduating high school seniors
  • Cultural events throughout the year

We honor and embrace our heritage, share it with others to create a larger community, and reawaken it for future generations.

We establish connections with people and organizations from all walks of life, which allows us to be inclusive and build bridges of respect and understanding. We have an unwavering commitment to supporting Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple (TSDBT).

Our historical connection with TSDBT goes back to the 1970s when community members of TSDBT created Sakura Square, which is located in downtown Denver. It was an ambitious project that built Tamai Tower (a 20-story apartment complex), the retail space that is home to Pacific Mercantile, and other commercial spaces.  At that time, Sakura Foundation’s name was Tri-State Buddhist Church Apartments Inc. (TSBCAI) and its mission was to operate and maintain Sakura Square.  Organizational changes took place in 2014 which created Sakura Square LLC as the owner and operator of the property. TSBCAI was renamed “Sakura Foundation” and adopted the charitable mission “to sustain TSDBT and celebrate Japanese and Japanese American heritage, culture, and community.”

Sakura Foundation is a Supporting Organization to The Denver Foundation and is the sole owner of Sakura Square LLC.

HERITAGE

We remember and honor the hard work and dedication of those who built our community

CULTURE

Our Japanese-American culture permeates our intentions, events, and programming

COMMUNITY

Our commitment to enhancing and embracing our community is steadfast

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Sakura Foundation honors and acknowledges that the land on which we operate is the traditional territory of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Peoples. We also recognize the 48 contemporary tribal nations that are historically tied to the lands that make up the State of Colorado. Consistent with our values of community and inclusion, we have a responsibility to acknowledge, honor, and make visible the Foundation’s relationship to Native land and people.

TEAM

STACEY SHIGAYA
STACEY SHIGAYA Executive Director
GRACE LEUNG
GRACE LEUNGProgram Coordinator
NOZOMU TIM HIGASHIDE
NOZOMU TIM HIGASHIDEExecutive Advisor

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

JONI SAKAGUCHI
JONI SAKAGUCHI Board President
DJ IDA
DJ IDABoard Vice President
KELLY YAMASAKI
KELLY YAMASAKI Board Secretary
DEREK OKUBO
DEREK OKUBO Board Treasurer
DREW DOMOTO
DREW DOMOTO Board Member
CATHY ISHIDA
CATHY ISHIDABoard Member
SACHI ISHIDA
SACHI ISHIDABoard Member
ALEX KIMATA
ALEX KIMATABoard Member
TOM MIGAKI
TOM MIGAKIBoard Member
KARA MIYAGISHIMA
KARA MIYAGISHIMABoard Member
NICK MOSKEVICH
NICK MOSKEVICHBoard Member
CHARLES OZAKI
CHARLES OZAKI Board Member
BRENT SABATI
BRENT SABATIBoard Member
GARY YAMASHITA
GARY YAMASHITABoard Member

Sakura Foundation Advisory Council

Bob Fujimoto

Steve Nitta

Joe Ozaki

Richard Yoshida

COMMUNITY REPORTS

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

Sakura Foundation collaborates and supports a variety of Japanese/Japanese American and Asian organizations in the region:

Organization Website
Asian Avenue Magazine https://www.asianavemag.com/
Asian Chamber of Commerce (ACC) https://www.acccolorado.org/
Asian Pacific Development Center (APDC) https://www.apdc.org/
Colorado Asian Culture and Education Network (CACEN) https://www.cacendenver.org/
Colorado Asian Pacific United (CAPU) https://coloradoasianpacificunited.org/
Community Organizing for Radical Empathy (CORE) https://coredei.com/
Denver Asian American Pacific Islander Commission (DAAPIC) https://tinyurl.com/457c986j
Denver-Takayama Sister Cities https://www.denvertakayama.org
Japan America Society of Colorado https://www.jascolorado.org
Japanese American Community Graduation Program (JACGP) https://www.jacgp.com
Japanese American Resource Center of Colorado (JARCC) https://www.jarcc-denver.org
Japanese Business Association of the Rockies (JBAR) https://www.jbarockies.org/
Mile High Chapter Japanese American Citizens League https://www.milehighjacl.org
Nikkeijin Kai of Colorado https://nikkeijinkai.co/
Nisei Veterans Heritage Foundation https://www.nvcfoundation.org/
Simpson United Methodist Church https://www.simpsonumc.com
Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple http://tsdbt.org/

As the co-presenters of the Annual Denver Cherry Blossom Festival, Sakura Foundation thanks everyone who came to the event, volunteered, vended, and performed!