Welcome to the New Staff at CLAIR New York
Uncategorized 
Comments Off on Welcome to the New Staff at CLAIR New York
Please give a warm welcome to the new staff at CLAIR New York
Takahiro Ando — Deputy Director, JLGC
Hello, everyone! I am Takahiro Ando, the new Deputy Executive Director of Japan Local Government Center. Like ex-Deputy Executive Director, Fukutomi, I am originally an officer at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, specializing in local government administration. In addition to my work in Tokyo, I have worked for two prefectural offices: Fukushima and Tochigi. Also, I was born in Kagawa, and raised in Chiba.
Although I have some “hometowns” in Japan, I have had almost no chance to visit foreign countries, so far. Therefore, I am so happy to have this opportunity to live and work in New York, which is full of energy and enthusiasm.
Concerning JET, my mother is an English teacher in Chiba, and I heard about ALT members she worked with. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to meet them in Japan. So, I am looking forward to getting in touch with you!
CLAIR Staff Responsible for JETAA USA
Sugawara san and Fujiwara san will be responsible for JETAA activities in the U.S. The same as last year, chapters will have a designated contact in CLAIR, separated into Eastern and Western Chapters. Shinori Nagasawa is still in New York and will be supporting JETAA Canada.
Aki Sugawara
sugawara@jlgc.org
Chicago, Heartland, Texoma, Rocky Mountain, Pacific Northwest, Portland, Northern California, Southern California, Hawaii, Minneapolis
I’m in charge of the western JETAA chapters this year. I’m originally from Yamagata Prefecture, which is located in northern Japan. Yamagata is famous for hot springs and ski resorts. Also, cherries and pears are so delicious. I’ve never been to America before, so this is my first trip. Everything about American life is new and it makes me excited. My hobby is playing instruments. But usually, I like to do things like walking and listening to music. I also like traveling. I’m looking forward to seeing many people and our getting to know each other. I’m so glad to be working with you. Let’s keep building a good relationship. Thank you!
Tomoko Fujiwara
fujiwara@jlgc.org
Washington DC, New York, New England, Southeast, Mid-South, Florida, Alaska, Great Lakes, and Music City
I’m in charge of the eastern JETAA USA chapters this fiscal year. I’m from Nagano Prefecture. Originally, however, I was born in Hiroshima and then moved to Tokyo. I also lived in Kyoto too. After that, I started working at the Nagano Prefectural Office from 2016. I had been to the US three time before I came to New York in April. My first visit to the US was to Guam with my family. The second time was Indiana State through a study abroad program to learn about agriculture in the US. After the program, I went to Washington, D.C., and New York. When I was a graduate student, I visited Philadelphia and Boston. As you can see, I like traveling abroad. I’ve been to Kenya, Spain, Germany, Mexico, and so on. I would like to visit the places I’ve never been to in the US as much as I can. Also I love music, including singing karaoke. I’m looking forward to working with you all and hope I have the chance to get to know each of you!
Farewell to Kotaro and Shigeru!
Thank you to all the chapters that submitted farewell messages to Kotaro (Tony) Kashiwai and Shigeru Fukutomi. They absolutely loved the messages and photos you included in their personalized books.
To stay in touch with Kotaro (Tony) Kashiwai please reach out to him on Facebook https://www.facebook. com/kotaro.kashiwai. To contact Shigeru please email him at s.fukutomi1974@gmail.com
Comments are closed.