BWA Friday Workshop, October 4, 2024

Parliamentary Procedures Workshop Presented by Gayle Kono, Esq.

Gayle Kono, Esq., is a native Sacramentan, graduating from C.K. McClatchy Senior High School. She attended UC Berkeley, where she graduated with high honors and earned a B.A. in English. She graduated from University of San Francisco School of Law. She is Special Counsel at Mokri Vanis & Jones, LLP in the Sacramento office. Her practice focuses on general liability litigation.

Workshop Description
Gayle has served as FBWA parliamentarian since 2021.  She will cover basic parliamentary procedure, as set forth in “Robert’s Rules of Order” which includes motions and resolutions, amendments, voting procedures and other information necessary to effectively participate and contribute as a delegate.

BWA Saturday Workshops, October 5, 2024

Liberating Buddhist Women with Dr. Paula Arai

Paula Arai (Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies, Harvard University) holds the Eshinni & Kakushinni Chair of Women and Buddhist Studies at the Institute of Buddhist Studies. She is author of Women Living Zen, Bringing Zen Home, Painting Enlightenment: Healing Visions of the Heart Sutra, and The Little Book of Zen Healing: Japanese Rituals for Beauty, Harmony, and Love. Her current project is: Of Lotuses and Mud: Women Liberating Buddhism. Steeped in ethnographic research, she takes an embodied approach to her work and finds poetic immersive storytelling a potent medium for conveying the experiences of transformative healing she researches. An active public speaker, Arai also leads workshops on healing rituals. Website: Zenhealing.org

Liberating Buddhist Women Workshop Description
			
Session I:  Liberating Buddhist Women:  Drinking Wisdom from Historical and Textual Streams. 

Focusing on how women wield liberating powers that reveals the ways in which women have been practically, historically, and conceptually vital to the founding and development of Buddhist tradition.  Drawing on a constellation of historical practices and teachings, this presentation aims to shine a fresh perspective on women’s contributions and creative activities.

Session II:  Liberating Buddhist Women:   Empowering Each Other.

Inspired by women’s engagement with Buddhist practices and teachings, we will reflect on how each of us, regardless of gender orientation, can wield liberating power in our lives.  We will begin with time for quiet introspection, perhaps writing notes for yourself as you would in a journal.  Forming small groups of two or three people, we will engage with each other through deep listening and respectful thoughtfulness.  Participants will help each other see and affirm how the Dharma can animate everyday activities such as talking, driving, cooking, cleaning and community and employment-based endeavors.  Returning to the full group, we will share highlights of the insights and creative modes explored.

Community Service Project – Handmade Cards

Workshop Description			 
Expand your card making skills while supporting two local medical housing facilities*.  Make two cards to be donated and one card to take home.  Supplies and directions will be provided. Your donated cards will be given to families using resources at Ronald McDonald House at Stanford and JW House in Sunnyvale.
 
*Ronald McDonald House at Stanford provides families with accommodations, meals, activities, and support as they seek lifesaving treatment at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford.

*JW House in Sunnyvale provides respite, accommodations, meals, and self-care during the day or overnight for families and caregivers with loved ones in Silicon Valley hospitals.

Soul Line Dancing Workshop with Juanita Croft

Juanita Croft has been the Soul Line Dancing instructor at Stanford University and at community centers in Santa Clara County.  She obtained her certification for Adaptive Fitness from Foothill College in 2004 and has been teaching Soul Line Dancing ever since. 

For Juanita, Soul Line Dancing has become a passionate routine for staying healthy and active.  It’s a great way to exercise the body and the mind while having fun, feeling the music, and dancing. Her classes are considered “Older Adult Friendly” exercise. 

Workshop Description				  
This workshop will be doing exercise that doesn't feel like exercise. Each dance is a choreographed routine set to music from the latest R&B artists to classic hits of the Motown and funk eras, zydeco, hip-hop, and everything in between. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes and be ready to feel like dancing. No experience is required.

Open Doors and Open Minds: The Future of the Buddhist Sangha

Bishop Marvin Harada will be the moderator for this panel discussion. He is the Bishop of the Buddhist Churches of America (BCA) since April 1, 2020.  As Bishop of BCA, he also serves as the superintendent of Hongwanji-ha's North American district. Prior to beginning his tenure as Bishop, Reverend Harada served as head minister of Orange County Buddhist Church for 33 years. He received degrees from the University of Oregon and Institute of Buddhist Studies before continuing his education in Japan at Chuo Bukkyo Gakuin Seminary and Ryukoku University (M.A., Shin Buddhist Studies).	

Workshop Description 	 
A panel discussion on how to grow our Sangha and Spread the Dharma. Discussion will cover using Technology, Buddhist Education, Engaged Dharma, and a Welcoming Culture to plant the seeds that will grow into increased membership and more engaged members in the Buddhist Sangha of the future.

The Art of Modern Lettering with Nicole Santo

Nicole Miyuki Santo is a freelance artist, graphic designer, teacher, and published author. Since 2015, she has taught in-person hand-lettering workshops empowering her students to tap into their creativity and develop their own unique voice. She is a kind spirit and truly believes that everyone, kids, and adults both, can enjoy using their own two hands to create. Her work has been featured in numerous publications, including Martha Stewart Magazine, and she is the author of By Hand: The Art of Modern Lettering. Nicole lives in Los Angeles, California. 

Workshop Description				
Modern lettering is about drawing letters, not writing them. It embraces the perfectly imperfect, the freedom to express yourself and the liberty to experiment.  

Attendees will create a small-framed lettering work of Namo Amida Butsu or Ichigo~Ichie.  

English/Japanese Mompo

Session #1 - English Mompo with Rev. Yukiko Motoyoshi			 
Rev. Yukiko Motoyoshi will conduct the English Mompo talk. She is the conference’s Japanese language keynote speaker, so this will be an opportunity for those who did not hear her keynote speech to hear her talk in English.  She will be continuing with the theme Ichi go Ichi e.

Rev. Yukiko Motoyoshi was born in Tokyo, the first daughter of a Jodo Shinshu minister. The family later moved to the Big Island of Hawaii, where she grew up and graduated from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. She attended graduate school at the University of Wisconsin at Madison in Buddhist studies. She received her Kaikyoshi status in March 1978. 

In May 1978, she returned to Hawaii, becoming a minister in the Honpa Hongwanji Hilo Betsuin, Mililani Hongwanji Mission, Lihue Hongwanji Mission, and the Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin. She later moved to the BCA and was assigned to the Buddhist Church of Stockton. Rev. Motoyoshi retired in June 2020. She was one of the keynote speakers of the 16th World Buddhist Women’s Convention in San Francisco in 2019. 

Session #2 - Japanese Mompo with Rev. Yushi Mukojima			

Rev. Yushi Mukojima, resident minister of the Mountain View Buddhist Temple will conduct the Japanese Mompo session based on the conference theme of Ichi go Ichi e. 

Rev. Yushi Mukojima is the resident minister of the Mountain View Buddhist Temple in California.
He comes from a long line of Buddhist ministers. His family heads a small Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temple in Obama City in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. His father is the 19th successor and his older brother will be the 20th.
“Our family temple ‘Renkoji’ was built in Obama City in 1471, “Mukojima said in an e-mail interview with the Nichi Bei Weekly, “It is one of many temples that were started by Rennyo Shonin who was the eighth head abbot of Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha.”
Rev. Mukojima was born in Osaka and raised in Obama. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Buddhist History in 1994 from Ryukoku University in Kyoto, Japan, which is a private university founded for Jodo Shinshu ministers and is his father’s alma mater.

LGBTQ+ Community Workshop w/ Hoshina Seki and Rev. Ko’e Umezu

Workshop Description
In our Jodo Shinshu Sangha, there are members of the LGBTQ+ community who struggle to find comfort in simply being themselves. We have both the responsibility and the ability to help them by providing a space in which they feel safe to be just who they are – openly and without fear. We must enable (kanō ni suru - 可能にする) the moment (shunkan -  瞬間). Highlighting the perspective of two members of both BCA and of the LGBTQ+ community, let us consider how we can make this happen.

Hoshina Seki:  She is a senior transgender woman; whose pronouns are she/her/hers.  Her late father, Reverend Hozen Seki, was the first minister at the Arizona Buddhist Temple. He also founded the New York Buddhist Church and the American Buddhist Academy, now known as the American Buddhist Study Center in New York City.
She grew up in a Jodo Shinshu temple, living above the Hondo, attending all the Sunday services, and listening to memorial services and special services. So, the Buddha Dharma was all around her.  As a temple kid, her parents wanted her to act appropriately. Even at this young age, she struggled with her identity.  It was not until years later that she discovered herself. Today, she is grateful to be the president of the American Buddhist Study Center and is continuing her parents' wish to spread the wisdom and compassion of the Buddha Dharma in this turbulent world.

Rev. Ko’e Umezu (she/her) was born in Los Angeles and raised in the San Francisco East Bay Area, and is currently residing in Torrance, CA with her spouse Marie Miyashiro. She is the eldest daughter of Rev. Kodo & Janet Umezu. Rev. Ko’e attended UC Davis, and graduated with a double major: a BA in Communications, and a BA in Studio Art. She is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Buddhist Studies at the Institute of Buddhist Studies. 
Rev. Ko’e Umezu received her tokudo ordination in the Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha tradition, at the Hongwanji in Kyoto in 2019, and was assigned as an assistant minister to Rev. Koho Takata at the West Los Angeles Buddhist Temple in August 2020, focusing on young adult outreach. She participated in the Kyoshi training session at the JSC and received her Kyoshi certification in October 2022.