Messages

March 10: Temple clean up
             18: 10am - Intro to Buddhism
             25: 11am - Ohigan service

April 8: Hanamatsuri Service

May 6: Gotan-e
        13: Eshinni/Kakushinni Service
        19: Annual Golf Tournament
         27:Cemetery Services

                 AUGUST 4: OBON

WOW! Just got back from the 2018 BCA (Buddhist Churches of America) Ministers’ Association and National Council Meeting in Sacramento. It was another interesting meeting. The weather was very cold but luckily we were indoors.

For those who are interested in Japanese American history, the BCA archives will be moved from the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) in Japan Town, Los Angeles. Rick Stambul, newly elected BCA President, spearheaded the move of artifacts and documents from the JANM due to the lack of resources to digitize the information and the cost associated in storing the material there. The committee reached out to 3 universities as a possible home to our valuable material: University of California at Los Angeles, Stanford University and the University of Southern California. Stanford and USC wanted more than BCA could afford. UCLA won the bid because they would provide everything at no cost including transporting the material from JANM to UCLA and dedicating personnel to digitize the material. Their storage facilities are huge and have the latest technology to protect the material from fire.

These artifacts will be easily accessible since UCLA is in West Los Angeles, close to LAX and Burbank airports. Digitization of materials will enable internet access by religious scholars, students, and Jodo Shinshu Buddhists. Furthermore, in 2020, BCA temples and churches will be able to send their historical artifacts to UCLA to have it stored there too. I thought this was a very interesting message to pass on to others knowing that we will be able to visit these artifacts and our grandchildren and their children can see where our Japanese culture started from. Thank you Mr. Rick Stambul, JANM and UCLA for preserving our Japanese artifacts and culture for the future.

Less than a week away is our annual Crab Feed. Hope to see you there helping your church in its first fundraiser.

In Gassho, Donna Sato

SLO BWA

Happy Spring 2018! It is hard to tell if it is spring yet because it has been so cold but the trees are starting to bloom and bulbs are flowering. It is looking very beautiful outdoors.

Saturday, March 10, is clean-up day at the church. Please come at 9:00 to help clean inside and outside, as well as upstairs and downstairs. Many helping hands make the work go faster.

Because it was such a success, we are having member Alan Bond come back on March 10 at 11 a.m. (after clean-up) to give a refresher class in self-defense for women. This event will also enable those of us who were not able to attend the first class get some hands on training. Alan was wonderful in teaching simple tricks to help women defend themselves and to feel more empowered in threatening situations. He wants to reinforce those tricks so we don’t forget them when we need them. There is a $5.00 charge to nonmembers of SLOBC, SLOBWA and Guadalupe Buddhist Church. We will provide lunch following the class.

The BWA membership dues are $20 for members up to age 75. Please remit your dues now to SLO BWA, P.O. Box 1755, Pismo Beach, CA 93449. Thank you!

In Gassho, Sandy Hongo