PSFS is excited to begin 2025 under the leadership of our new Executive Director. As we welcome this new chapter, we want to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude to our outgoing ED, Emiko Morita, for a nearly decade of remarkable service. Her vision and tireless efforts have left an indelible mark on the Powell Street Festival Society, and we invite you to read a tribute to her contributions, featuring quotes and reflections from our community members.
"As the Executive Director for Powell Street Festival Society, Emi worked tirelessly and the Board could trust in her judgment, organization, and leadership. As Board President I had the pleasure of spending many hours with Emi brainstorming, troubleshooting, and anticipating the next challenges that the Society would face. There is a misconception that because our signature event is our summer Festival, there is little to do for the rest of the year. Emi's commitment to PSFS and extended hours of work continued year-round. As the ED, Emi would be constantly looking for ways to improve our programming, our infrastructure, and viability. Her love for the community, the Society, and her team was evident in all of her leadership decisions. Under Emi's leadership PSFS underwent a period of significant growth and professionalization. During her tenure PSFS established our seasonal events, the Community Cares program, and our monthly donor program, strengthening our relationship to the neighborhood and providing our supporters a year-round opportunity to stay involved. She established systems for knowledge transfer, documenting our processes to ensure that PSFS is in a state of readiness for transition and an exciting future. The Cultural Workers' Training developed by Emi contextualizes the Festival and sets out the values which govern how PSFS operates to new staff, volunteers, and youth cohort members. Emi has been instrumental in ensuring the Festival presevered and thrived during the past decade through some unprecedented challenges. While Emi is stepping down from her ED role, she will stay involved with the Society, supporting this period of transition and the upcoming festival production. Most notably she is curating the Festival's 50th Anniversary retrospective exhibition. The Board is incredibly grateful for all of Emi's contributions. On a personal note I am honored to have had the privilege of working alongside her, to learn from her dedication, compassion, and commitment, and to be able to call her a friend."
"It's an understatement to say that Emi will have an enduring legacy at PSFS. Upon joining, she quickly identified opportunities to improve our capacity to carry out our mandate. In expanding our team, she helped ensure that staff could expand our programming and production while sustaining manageable workloads and high job satisfaction. Emi also has thought critically about the long-term sustainability of the Society. Long standing on the shoulders of key JC community leaders, PSFS moved to both document operational knowledge of festival production, while also providing numerous opportunities for young leaders to be mentored and develop professionally into our leaders of the future. Her tenure at PSFS has been one combining immense creativity, administrational acumen, and a clear passion for fostering community through excellence in arts and culture. Whether it be her ability to pivot quickly through a pandemic, to introducing programming that expands our geographic reach (e.g. Japanese Canadian Youth Cohort), to developing strong community partnerships with local businesses, JC organizations, and donors, Emi leaves PSFS as a vibrant, thriving organization. We will forever be grateful for her leadership."
"Dear Emi, Am happy that I’ve been with you for both your stints at the festival – even though they were many, many years apart! Thank you for guiding the festival so well, especially during the difficult covid years. We couldn’t have done it without you! "
"I am so grateful to Emi for pouring her heart, soul, and creativity into our work at PSFS. Emi has helped move PSFS forward on so many levels. From elevating artistic practices to broadening our scope of art making and community building to managing the many challenges of COVID-19, Emi has been an inspiring collaborator, leader, and supporter. Emi brought her unique ability to observe and then formalize the work that so many people have been doing at PSFS for decades, and to create and implement structures to support that work. At the same time, she saw gaps and created thoughtful, interesting, and artistic solutions. I really appreciate her openness to learning from others and then taking action and adding her own eloquence to be a crucial part of the never-ending struggles to decolonize, fight racism, and pursue justice. All I can say is that I'm glad she is not leaving us and that she has offered to continue being a part of future PSFS celebrations, challenges, and joy!"
"Dear Emi, I am very sad to see you leaving the Festival. But it is true for any cultural organization to pass the torch to the next young leader in order to keep the cultural program fresh and relevant. Your departure is at the right time. I sincerely thank you for your hard work. As you might remember your start at the Festival as the executive director was coincided with my thought of " giving back to the community " as an Architect. The outcome of several meetings was the installation of Asahi Baseball Pitch at the 2015 Festival commemorating the Legendary Asahi Baseball Team in collaboration with Abaton Project, Subsequently the Design Competition for the Interactive Art Installation was held annually till 2020. It gave an opportunity for young students at BCIT, UBC, SFU and Emily Carr to learn the design process and the construction from the experts in a short time of several months. I believe the program was a big success. You have done a lot behind the scene most of the time , and deserve a huge credit as the main contributor for the Festival since you got involved as the executive director of the Festival in 2014 . Otsukare Sama deshita."
"Emiko has done so much to advance how PSFS interacts with its neighbours in a respectful, compassionate way. Instead of just putting on a once-a-year festival, the society strives to give back to its neighbours and Indigenous community year round. That is the main reason I came back into supporting the PSFS."
"Emi — Thank you for your leadership for creating a space I felt so welcomed in! I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn from and alongside you 🙂 wishing you all the best in whatever comes next ❤️"
