Dec 4

2017 Sakura Matsuri: Looking for Committee Members

Events Comments Off on 2017 Sakura Matsuri: Looking for Committee Members

Posted by Sydney Sparrow, an ALT currently living in Toyota City. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Committee Members 
Posted by: Japan-America Society of Washington DC
Location: Washington, D.C., USA

Each spring during the cherry blossom season, Japan-America Society of Washington DC (JASWDC) produces the largest one-day Japanese street festival in America, and it is here in the Nation’s Capital!  This coming year the festival will be held on Saturday, April 8 from 10:30 to 6:00 pm in the Capitol Riverfront Neighborhood in SE DC (Navy Yard Metro Station).  Each year, it takes about 65 Sakura Matsuri Committee members and over 600 volunteers to put on this huge event.

The festival is not only the celebration of the gift of the cherry trees in 1912, but also JASWDC’s largest outreach program to educate Washingtonians about Japanese culture.  For the last three years, we have been able to impact over 100,000 people and show the richness of Japan and its culture.

The Sakura Matsuri Committee is divided up into 18 different sub-committees which are led by Chairs and Sub-chairs.  Each year, JASW is very lucky to have a strong core of committee members who come back year after year.  However, there are always a couple of spots we need to fill.  We understand that many of our Sakura Matsuri Committee members work, go to school or live in other cities, and may not be able to come to all the meetings.  In that case, each committee and its members should be in contact by e-mail or phone talking about committee responsibilities.

Our first meeting is on Friday, December 16 at JASWDC from 6:30.  The following meeting will be a team building meeting on Sunday, January 8 from 12:00 to 4:00 pm.  The team building meeting is designed for all the committees to meet and get to know each other.  We do exercises that help us prepare for the festival; more experienced committee members will discuss their experiences with Sakura Matsuri, and have a good time with people all working for the same goal, putting on the best Japanese street festival in the country.

On the day of the festival the Chairs and Sub-chairs are asked to arrive at 4:30 am to help unload the truck, and organize their committee supplies.  Sometimes, it feels like there is never enough time!

Meeting Schedule:

1. Friday, December 16 at JASWDC from 6:30pm
2. Sunday, January 8 from 12 – 4pm
3. February Individual Meetings with Sub-Committees
4. Friday, March2 at JASWDC from 6:30 pm
5. On-site Meeting, TBD at Capitol Riverfront from 10am
6. Volunteer Orientation at JASW; tentatively scheduled for March 19 thru March 31.
7. Last Meeting, Wednesday, April 5 at JASWDC from 6:30pm
8. Sakura Matsuri – Saturday, April 8 at Capitol Riverfront from 4:30am

Orientations for day-of volunteers will be at the end of March.  The Beer Garden’s orientation is mandatory for everyone!  For the Alcohol Committee orientations, a representative from DC’s ABRA comes out and lectures us on ID checking and JASWDC goes line by line for our management plan for the gardens.  We will offer 4 Beer Garden Orientations for volunteers to join.

If you are interested in being a part of the largest and best run Japanese street festival, please feel free to contact me directly at mhitzig@jaswdc.org, and I will let you know what positions on the Sakura Matsuri Committee are open.

Thank you very much and I hope to speak with you soon.