Stone Lake Elementary School Mixer Choir May 2010

STONE LAKE AND SIMS SCHOOLS
HAD WONDERFUL SPRING CONCERTS.

Foulks Ranch Performance coming up, and then we will be on Summer Break.

(Thanks to Lou Ann Ghilain for the great photo from the Stone Lake performance!)

It focuses on two best friends, Penny Chan (Chinese) and Aya Matsui (Japanese), spending their final moments together, not realizing their lives will soon be forever changed by the Japanese internment.

Claire Mix and Solo Films wishes Alice Kim, her cast and crew all the best and great success.

For more information, click on the image, or go to:

http://www.acrossroadcalledmanzanar.com/

A GREAT PERFORMANCE!

Our Foulks Ranch Elementary performance was at 6:30pm on Friday December 18, 2009.
We all had a great time!

  
Whoa!  Just click here to see the show photos:
      
 Be sure to click the slideshow button on the Flickr page!

  

A GREAT PERFORMANCE!

Our Stone Lake Elementary performance was at 6:30pm on Tuesday December 15, 2009. We had a great time and the students were all wonderful. A big “Thank You” to Peggy Seko and Lou Ann Ghilain, Assistant Choral Directors, and to Stan Seko for making us all sound so good. And, of course, to all parents and the staff at Stone Lake for their support and encouragement.

Many thanks to Les Wong for permission to use his photos taken during performance of the song “Sakura”. The announcer was Olivia Fitts, and the soloist was Ayumi Wong. Featured in the photos: Natalie Seko, Ayumi Wong, Emily Seko.

Last Friday, I gave the keynote address at the University of California, San Francisco ceremony at which honorary degrees were bestowed on Nisei students whose education was interrupted because of the concentration camps. Because I mentioned your mother in my speech, I thought you might be interested in reading it.

I hope this email finds you as well as can be expected and that you are finding your work on documenting your mother’s kindness and courage exhilarating and deeply satisfying.

Pat Hayashi

What a wonderful, beautiful day!

I have the honor of speaking to the UC community on behalf of the Japanese American community.

I also have the honor of speaking to the Nisei who are being honored today on behalf of their children and grandchildren…

… At Gila River, 15-year-old Ruth Mix lied about her age, so she could help out in the camp hospital. There, she and other workers smuggled in medical supplies, sanitary napkins, clothing, shoes – anything to help.

You told us about their acts of kindness and courage. But you never talked about your own.

But, now your stories are being told…

Claire Mix’s documentary entitled “Gila River and Mama: The Ruth Mix Story”, which focuses on her mother and grandmother’s experience in a Japanese-American internment camp, will be completed by the end of December 2009. The premiere will be on or around February 19, which is the Day of Remembrance. Please check back to the blog for any further changes or updates.

Meanwhile…

Because of the positive reception of “The Barnsley Nightingale”, Claire is in the process of finishing another KidVid Digital entitled “Grampa’s Chair”. This video features the song Claire wrote about her father and how all of her students loved to play in his electric wheelchair. Featured soloist is Sean Warrick. Music arranged by his father, J.D. Warrick. You can hear more of J.D.’s musical arrangements at jdwarrick.com

Claire is in the preliminary stages of illustrating her children’s book entitled “Polly Sue Potts and her Magnificent Kite Flight”. This KidVid Digital is of a larger scale production and will be available to view in Spring 2010. It will be narrated by Delta Pick Mello, colorization by Chris Winner, and musical arrangements by J.D. Warrick and Jeremy Johnson. To see a preview of this up and coming project, head to the mixerkids.com and click on Coming Attractions.

Mixer is so proud of her Joseph Sims Choir for putting on an excellent spring performance. Not one lyric was forgotten, not one note was missed. Mixer was honored with a plaque that had the words to her newest song, “Put your Suitcase Down” (the Barack Obama song). It brought her to tears.

Special thanks to Diane Steiner for her excellent co-teaching and to J.D. Warrick for his sound and lights.

YOU ALL DID A WONDERFUL JOB!!!

Over 40 people were involved in the shoot, adults and children alike. It was another very emotional day for everyone since many of the actors had parents or grandparents who were previously interned.

Special thanks Ben Ferrer, Charles Klass, and Delta Mello. A special thanks to Kiyomi for being an excellent translator.

photo by jdwarrick

click to view more production photos