By Scott Kawaguchi

Over the past year I have had the great pleasure of working as your Managing Editor here at Nikkei Voice, and it has truly been an unforgettable experience. I feel very fortunate to have been able to engage with the Japanese Canadian community on a personal, local, and national level, and to have gained a deeper understanding of the community in the process.

As a result, it was a difficult decision for me to decide to step away from Nikkei Voice, and to pursue an opportunity teaching English in Japan on the JET Programme. Ultimately, the opportunity that presented itself was one I could not turn down, and I am excited to embark upon this new adventure, especially knowing that the newspaper is in capable hands moving forward. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Publisher Jody Hamade and the rest of the Board of Directors for bringing me onboard, and for all of their tremendous support. I would also like to thank our dedicated group of writers, who offer their time and talents to create interesting stories each month. To our readers, your support and generosity is what keeps us going. Thank you also to our hard-working staff and volunteers, and loyal advertisers.

Starting with the September issue, the new Managing Editor listed here will be Matthew O’Mara. For those who have read recent issues of the newspaper, you will recognize Matthew as one of our contributing writers. As a yonsei and recent Ryerson Journalism graduate, Matthew brings with him plenty of relevant experience, most recently with the National Post, and possesses the skills to further the advancement of Nikkei Voice amidst a changing media landscape. We are excited to welcome Matthew to the team.

We will also be saying farewell this month to our two interns, Miki Nomura and Mizuki Ogi, both of whom will soon be leaving us to return to Japan. In their brief time at NV, the two have done a tremendous job of bringing a new energy to our Japanese language section, while providing assistance wherever it has been needed. We wish them well.

Finally, this has been an exciting last issue for me to be a part of, and I hope you will enjoy reading it. As always, please feel free to contact us with your news, feedback, questions, or suggestions.

Have a great summer!

This article appeared in the July and August issue of Nikkei Voice.