The Veterans Memorial Court Alliance (VMCA) together with co-sponsors Go For Broke National Education Center, Japanese American Cultural & Community Center, Japanese American National Museum, Keiro and Little Tokyo Service Center, announced that on Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 11:00 AM, the Annual Memorial Day Service to honor all Japanese Americans who gave their lives in our nation’s wars, will be held adjacent to the Japanese American National War Memorial Court at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center (JACCC), located  244 S. San Pedro Street in the Little Tokyo District of Los Angeles, California.

Our community and nation are forever indebted to these Japanese Americans from all wars whose names are engraved on the four Monuments in the Memorial Court, for their supreme sacrifice for the United States of America.

VMCA is pleased to announce that the keynote speaker will be Hubert Yoshida. As a child, Hubert was interned at Poston, Arizona. After growing up on a farm in Watsonville, he graduated from the University of California in 1962. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the Marine Corps, attended OCS and became a Marine Corps officer in time to lead a platoon in combat in Vietnam. He was decorated for valor with two Bronze Stars.

After his service he worked for IBM, then joined Hitachi Data Systems where he was Vice President and Chief Technology Officer. He retired in 2020 and is the author of the book, “Operation Utah: The Die is Cast”. It is the story of the Marines first encounter with the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), contains first-hand accounts of the men who participated in Operation Utah and is a tribute to the 99 Marines and Corpsmen who made the ultimate sacrifice in that battle.

Master of Ceremonies will be Les Higa, US Army Veteran and Board Member of Veterans Memorial Court Alliance. Singing the National Anthem and God Bless America will be Helen Ota, Grateful Crane Ensemble and VMCA Board Member.

On display inside the JACCC will be the photo exhibit of almost all of the 255 JA Heroes who gave their lives in the Korean War. This photo tribute was created by the Japanese American Korean War Veterans group over 20 years ago and will be available for public viewing from 30 minutes before the service to 1 hour after.

Also participating will be representatives from the many veteran and community organizations throughout the Southern California area. The Koyasan Buddhist Temple Boy Scout Troop 379 and the Redondo Union High School Marine Corp Jr. ROTC will again perform the uniformed ceremonies of the service. Representatives from the Buddhist and Christian faiths will offer prayers to these brave men.

The Veterans Memorial Court Alliance invites fellow veterans, active duty personnel and all members of the community to join the service to remember and honor heroes who gave their precious lives on our behalf.