Phew, September was busy! For us at Bess Press, we participated in events that bookended our month with meaningful experiences:
2023 Okinawan Festival
We were honored to participate in this year's festival with Lee A. Tonouchi by joining as a craft vendor to sell CHIBURU: Anthology of Hawaiʻi Okinawan Literature and other Okinawan books.
We hosted Lee and fellow contributors to CHIBURU at our signing table where attendees could have their books personalized and get to talk story!
Katsu Goto Legacy Week
We celebrate Katsu Goto Legacy Week with events for the public in Hilo and Honokaʻa. We week's events included author readings with Dr. Patsy Y. Iwasaki and visiting relatives, dignitaries and friends from Japan, the U.S. continent and Hawai‘i.
Katsu Goto Legacy & Education Committee was formed to recognize the life and legacy of Katsu Goto; led by Dr. Patsy Y. Iwasaki of the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, with representatives from the: Hāmākua Jodo Mission, Honokaʻa Heritage Center, Honoka‘a Hongwanji Mission Peace Committee, North Hawaii Heritage Foundation, Goto of Hiroshima Foundation, family of Dr. Fumiko Kaya and Yuku Kobayakawa Ishii.
Learn more about Katsu Gotoʻs life by reading the graphic novel, "Hāmākua Hero: A True Plantation Story" (Bess Press, 2010).