Nishimachi-Kai

Nishimachi-Kai 2019-2020

Nancy Hashima ‘83

Nishimachi-Kai Chair

Nishimachi-Kai is the alumni association of Nishimachi International School, and its board plays an active role in the school community. We are invited to participate in, and support, various school activities, as well as organize events of our own during the school year.

Most importantly, Nishimachi-Kai sponsors booths at Nishimachi’s annual Food Fair in October and hosts the alumni BBQ in June. We are always pleased to welcome back a wide range of alumni from different generations and various parts of the world to these seasonal events. Although we were unable to host our annual June BBQ due to COVID-19, we had a remarkably successful Food Fair in October despite the cold rain. Alumni Haruko (Kawai) Kohno ’85 and alumni parent Wendy Kobayashi did an incredible job decorating our booth at the newly renovated Green Building to look like a true alumni café. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the following donors who supported the October 2019 Food Fair.

Regardless of how much time has passed since any one of us was a student at Nishimachi, fond memories remain, and the school spirit lives on in the alumni community. This is true not just of our most ardent alumni, who frequently return to the school and lend support, but also of those alumni who have not been back to the school for decades but keep in touch from afar.

Our activities bring together all members of Nishimachi-Kai (alumni, parents of alumni, former staff, and friends of Nishimachi). We also do our best to reach out and strengthen our communication with the current Nishimachi community in order to pass on the distinct values of the school, which we learned as students, as well as the traditions some of us were fortunate enough to experience first-hand during Miss Matsukata’s time. Our long-time culture of working together with compassion and empathy continues to make Nishimachi International School truly strong and special today.

The founder’s foresight to educate children as true global ambassadors in a culturally diverse but family-like environment has positioned Nishimachi today in the forefront of excellent international education. The Nishimachi-Kai board will continue to work hard to ensure that current students and their parents can experience the same special educational and cultural opportunities earlier generations had during their time as students.

Donors and Volunteers

Cheerio Company * Go and Kaoru Abekawa Nahomi Aiko Sarah Brauer ‘16 Yukari Fackler Eriko (Sakamoto) Fukuyama ‘96 Lalaka (Ogawa) Fukuma ‘90 Fred Gifford ‘02 Fergus Gifford ‘03 Ricky Higa ‘94 Matthew Joseff ‘85 Momoka Kataoka ‘90 Izuru Kato ‘90 Kazuho Kawaguchi ‘97 Shige, Wendy, and Ellen Kobayashi Haruko (Kawai) Kohno ‘85 Olga Krajenbrink Stephanie Lee Risa Mackey Kit Nagamura Mayumi Nakayama ‘90 Yoko Nakayama Cathy Noyes Aki Ohtaka ‘12 Emi Omata ‘02 Austin Powell ‘18 Makiko (Takayama) Saito ‘87 Chikako Sato Hiroko Shiraishi Kotoe Shirakawa ‘00 Chikako Shumway Junko Sumiya ‘83 Rie Tanaka Mako (Hara) Tomita ‘86 Mayu Watanabe Langevin Yuko Yamada ‘90

* Corporate Donor

Type of Gifts

Annual Fund

Nishimachi’s unique and rich international program increasingly relies on outside funding to enhance further the school’s ability to individualize the educational experience. These unrestricted gifts make a difference to all Nishimachi students by underwriting the dayto-day needs of our music and arts programs, science and technology laboratories, athletic programs, facilities, and so much more.

Restricted Gifts

Restricted gifts are given with the understanding that they be used to address specific, designated needs of Nishimachi. Such gifts have supported the Outreach Scholarship program, community services program, Japanese social studies, visiting author program, technology, Tané Matsukata Fund for International Education, sports teams, and specific departments within the school.

Endowment Fund

Endowments create a permanent fund, from which interest income is used for the specified purpose. Contributions are restricted gifts that establish or add to existing memorial or other funds. Currently, annual income from ten endowment funds supports scholarships, the library, Japanese social studies, music, photographic archives, and faculty professional development. Nishimachi’s goal is to increase the current endowment so that changes in the economic climate do not adversely affect the quality of education the school provides. (See page 48.)

Corporate Matching Gifts

Did you know that your company’s matching gift program could make your donation to Nishimachi go even further? Many companies have programs through which they match the charitable contributions made by their employees.

Planned Gifts

Planned gifts are made by individuals who include Nishimachi International School in their estate plans, or who establish a special gift or endowment with appreciated securities or real estate. Planned gifts can honor a former teacher, establish a scholarship in the name of a class or loved one, or support a specific program. For more information, contact Matt McKinney, Director of Advancement.

Gifts-in-Kind

Gifts-in-kind are non-cash donations, such as services or equipment. Computers, printers, musical instruments, books, and items used as prizes for special events have previously been donated. Such gifts are greatly appreciated and do much to enhance the learning environment for our students.

Corporate Contribution Program (CCP)

The CCP is a special corporate scholarship program that is available for organizations that are responsible for covering expatriate employee’s educational expenses. Instead of paying tuition and applicable fees, companies agree to make donations to the school. The donations are used partly to fund special corporate scholarships, which are granted to dependents of participating companies. Nishimachi is thus able to receive annual donations that exceed what is required to fund the corporate scholarships. For more information, contact Matt McKinney, Director of Advancement.