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The SLOBC Golf Tournament was held on May 19 at beautiful Cypress Ridge Golf Course. It was a big success due to the hard work of Director Alan Hayashi and all the people who helped in big and small ways. It takes a village to raise a child but it also takes a village to put on an event like the tournament and make it such a wonderful day that many people look forward to every year. Some people come from far away and everyone
has a great time due to the hard work by many. So thank you to all!

The BCA Federation of Buddhist Women’s Association is hosting its 2018 conference from September 14 to 16 at the Visalia Marriott Conference Center. The theme is “Create an Endless Ripple”. The English keynote speaker is Rev. Bob Oshita and the Japanese keynote speaker is Rev. Ryuta Furumoto. The conferences are a wonderful opportunity to meet other BWA members from around the country. There are always interesting workshops and this year a bus trip is planned to visit the rich agricultural lands of Tulare County. Registration is $200 per person and there is a special rate for the hotel reservation of $124 per night. Please let me know if you are interested in attending and I will provide the code to make the hotel reserva-tion at the conference rate. Registration deadline is July 31 and we have to register together as a church.

The 2019 World Buddhist Women’s Convention will be in San Francisco in August 2019. In advance of the convention there is a fundraiser called “Arigato Obaachan”. This is to honor all the Buddhist women who through their sacrifice, hard work, dedication, generosity, and pursuit of the Buddha Dharma showed us how to “Live the Nembutsu”. Honor the women in your lives by making a donation in their names. A Bodhi leaf with their name and yours will be displayed at the World Convention in the following designations: $1,000 and up – gold leaf, $100 to $999 – silver leaf, $50 to $99 – bronze leaf, $20 to $49 – lavender leaf. The SLO Board of Directors and the SLO Buddhist Women’s Association have combined to make a $1,000 donation to all the BWA women past and present in our sangha. I have the applications to “Arigato Obaachan” so please contact me for a copy.

In gassho, Sandy Hongo

Hello Sangha Members,

WOW! What can I say except “Thank You, Thank You.” The Golf Tournament was our second fundraiser. Sangha Members and non-members came together again. It was hard work for everyone but the positive comments were very gratifying. The weather was sunny but towards the end, it was windy and cold. Afterwards, all the golfers met at the Hayashi Ranch and had a feast of good, delicious food. Thanks to the BBQ crew, BWA ladies, SLOBC members, family members and friends who helped with the feast. All the golfers were commenting that “This is the best BBQ food they have ever had.” Some look forward to just the food and hospitality of the members. THANK YOU ALL for making this fundraiser a success. Our third fundraiser, the Obon Festival, is our largest and last of the year. It will happen of Saturday, August 4. We can always use additional help for this event and if you are interested, please contact one of our Board Members.

On Saturday, May 5th, we had 30 to 40 people participating in our Spring Odori enjoying Japanese Folk Dancing. Tomi Kobara and Julie Conaway led the group. Weather was with us which made it more enjoyable.

During a break from dancing, participants ate delicious Japanese curry made by Rev. Nakano and Sylvia Bridge along with scrumptuous strawberry shortcake. SLOBC’s own Ichimi Daiko Taiko Group also performed during the break.
A special Thank You and appreciation should go to Henry Okui for providing bountiful amounts of delicious strawberries for the Spring Odori and Golf Tournament.

If you ae interested in Japanese Folk Dancing in preparation for our Obon Festival, Tomi Kobara and Julie Conaway will have practices on the following days:
Sunday, July 8 and 15 at 1:00 PM
Thursday, July 12, 19 and 26 at 7:00 PM
Practices for all days will be held in our Social Hall. Join in and have some fun!

On Sunday, July 1 after our Dharma Service, Ichimi Daiko will be putting on an Appreciation Tea for all in attendance. We continue to have Japanese conversational language classes on the 1st and 4th Sundays at 10 AM and chanting classes on the 2nd Sunday at 10 AM. Hope to see you at these classes and at our regular Dharma Services.

In Gassho, Donna Sato