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The Powell Street Festival takes place on the traditional, unceded and occupied territories of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations.
Our Team
The Powell Street Festival Society would not be possible without the support of our generous and committed volunteers, who make up the Board of Directors, several committees, and hundreds of volunteer positions during Festival weekend. Staff work collaboratively with volunteers throughout the year, to ensure programming and events are inclusive and representative of the communities we serve.
Board of Directors
Our active and dedicated volunteer Board of Directors sit on four volunteer committees: Advocacy and Outreach, Programming, Fundraising, and Festival (seasonal). Our directors bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to the Society and share a love of Japanese Canadian art and culture.
Edward Takayanagi is a child of post-war immigrants, born and raised in Alberta. He attended Kyoto University on the Monbusho Scholarship and lived in Japan for 5 years. After graduation he returned to Canada and moved to Vancouver to attend Law School at the University of British Columbia. He has worked for a Japanese multi-national company, in private practice, for non-profit organizations and government agencies. He has been appointed as a member of the Human Rights Tribunal in 2022.
Born and raised in Vancouver, Russell has been attending the Powell Street Festival for as long as he can remember. Russell studied environmental science at UBC and graduated with a JD from the University of Victoria in 2023. He currently works on the North Shore as an associate lawyer at Ratcliff LLP and looks forward to continuing as a board member this year.
Rachael (she/her) is a Japanese-Canadian of mixed descent. She was born and raised on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Over the past ten years, she has worked in various non-profit positions, including museum programming, informal education, and fundraising, which she now focuses on. As a yonsei with grandparents who frequented Paueru Gai before WWII internment and post-war resettlement, she is passionate about preserving Japanese-Canadian history and showcasing the community’s arts and culture in new and innovative ways.
Kevin Takahide Lee descends from those who experienced the Chinese head tax and the Japanese Canadian Internment. Witnessing the challenges immigrant families faced led Taka to work in the arts and advocacy.
For over a decade Taka has portrayed Japanese Canadian veteran Zennosuke Inouye with the Surrey ReEnactors. Other notable roles include Dr. Gordon Hirabayash in Jeanne Sakata’s ‘Hold These Truths’ and Hideo Sakamoto in ‘Forgiveness’ by Mark Sakamato play by Hiro Kanagawa.
Reiko (she/her) was born in Japan and raised in Burnaby. As a Speech-Language Pathologist, she works with children with communication disabilities. Reiko has been volunteering with PSFS since 2010 and previously served on the Board of Directors in 2010-2015. She is excited for this opportunity to return to the Board.
Asia (she/her) is a mixed-heritage yonsei settler living and working on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. She has held various roles in arts organizations ranging from administrator to event producer to sales manager, and is passionate about building community through art. She has been involved with Powell Street Festival Society since 2015.
Kevin grew up locally and was born to a Japanese father born in Vancouver who was interned during WWII and a Japanese mother born in Japan. He has spent his entire life in the lower mainland and graduated from BCIT with Diploma in Marketing Management and a second one in Financial Management. He has been in the telecom industry since 1981 and has owned and operated Santel Communications since 1996. He has served on Boards and Advisory Committees for his local church, a summer kids camp facility and an annual Men’s Event. Kevin has attended dozens of Powell Street Festivals over the years. He is married for over 35 years and has two adult daughters (one married) living in the lower mainland and is excited to be serving with PSF.
Nakama Volunteers
Nakama Volunteers play a large role in our outreach, events, and governance. They bring a range of skills and expertise to the committee. Please contact emiko [at] powellstreetfestival.com if you are interested in joining any of these committees.
Programming Committee researches and identifies artists and arts organizations that give voice to the Japanese Canadian community. Learn more ›
Advocacy and Outreach Committee promotes the profile of the organization to the cultural, social, political and mainstream communities; and participates in Downtown Eastside community-building efforts. Learn more ›
Fundraising Committee solicits and secures financial support. Learn more ›
Festival Committee (seasonal) coordinates the logistics and production of the Festival.
Staff
Emiko Morita is a third-generation mixed-heritage Japanese Canadian who has been active in Vancouver’s cultural scene for over 30 years. Her earliest grassroots experiences include the Powell Street Festival and the Chinese Cultural Centre’s art event Racy Sexy. She has worked in the publishing industry with some of Canada’s leading writers and has served on the boards of the Asian Canadian Writers Workshop, Modern Baroque Opera, Access Copyright and the Association of Book Publishers of BC. Morita joined Powell Street Festival Society as Executive Director in 2015, is a member of the BC Arts Council’s Equity Advisory Network and a founding member of the DTES Community Land Trust Society.
Miki Konishi (he/him) is a mixed, nisei Japanese-American who grew up in the suburbs of Washington D.C. From young age, he has been involved in the Japanese community through cultural and educational practices such as kendo and Japanese Saturday school. He became more involved in social justice advocacy beginning in college, where he co-founded MULTI, a student organization for multiracial and multiethnic students, while completing his BA in Critical Theory and Social Justice at Occidental College in Los Angeles, California. After college, Miki moved to Miyazaki prefecture in Japan to teach English to elementary and junior high school students for two years. Following his time in Japan, he moved to Washington state where he worked as an Admission Officer for Whitman College and remotely as an Assistant Teacher for the Japanese Saturday school he attended as a kid. Miki is excited to serve the Downtown Eastside community and contribute to the important work of Powell Street Festival Society
Kathy Shimizu is a sansei, graphic and web designer, artist, and community organizer. She has worked for the Powell Street Festival Society in various roles since 1991, is a co-founder, collective member, and administrator of WePress, serves on the Greater Vancouver Japanese Canadian Citizens’ Association Human Rights Committee, and is a member of Sawagi Taiko. She works to use the importance of history, and the power and joy of arts and culture, to build community, fight for social justice and change, and help create space for the voices of communities and individuals marginalized by our existing systems.
Hamid Husaini was born in Afghanistan. Due to war, he left the country and lived and studied in neighboring Iran. Hamid later got his BA from Kabul University in English Literature and his master’s degree in English (Literary & Cultural Studies) from India.
He has worked as a journalist and translator for different media outlets and organizations in Afghanistan. Hamid has been assigned to various positions for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Affairs and his last job before coming to Canada was Third Secretary at the Afghan Embassy in Brussels, Belgium.
Megumi Yamaguchi is a Japanese immigrant who grew up in Chiba, Japan. Since childhood, she has been passionate about Japanese traditional arts, including calligraphy, the tea ceremony, and kimono. With a background as a Visual Designer specialising in User Experience Design, she has dedicated herself to assisting small businesses in building their online presence. She is thrilled to be working for the Powell Street Festival Society and the surrounding neighborhood communities.