Our staff and Board members
David Yoshimura
David Yoshimura is fourth generation Japanese-American and an Iowa native. He grew up in Waukee, Iowa, and attended Iowa State University in Ames. He taught English for several years in Iowa public schools, in Chiba prefecture in Japan, and in Chicago, Illinois. He lives in West Des Moines with his wife and two kids. He is currently an attorney with international law firm Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath in its Des Moines office, where he maintains a legal practice in international litigation, arbitration, and dispute resolution. He is a board member with JASI and the Iowa Asian Alliance, as well as an active member of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.
BOARD CHAIR & PRESIDENT
Del Christensen
Del Christensen joined the JASI Board in the past year. He also serves on the Iowa-Yamanashi Sister State Committee and has served previously on the Iowa-Terengganu, Malaysia Sister State Committee. He is the Executive Director of Iowa Resource for International Service (IRIS), a nonprofit organization that promotes international peace and understanding. Through this work, he has assisted with cultural and educational programs involving more than 2,300 participants from 58 different countries. Del has made more than 75 trips to countries around the world coordinating humanitarian projects. He has long been interested in Japanese culture and his interest heightened after his daughter spent 6 years teaching English in Japan.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & VICE PRESIDENT
Yoko Tanaka
Ms. Tanaka brings over 30 years of experience in customer service with servicing the businesses that work between the American and Japanese cultures. She is bilingual, bi-cultural, knowledgeable and talented in many areas, and her expertise in talent development and relationship management would be the imperative skill sets for our organization growth. She will oversee the administration, programs, and strategic plan of the organization.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
Tanis Sotelo
Tanis Sotelo has been an active member since 2011. He started learning about the Japanese language and culture back in 2005 at Central Campus in Des Moines, Iowa and travel to Japan on a school trip to Yamanashi, Japan. On his first day in Japan, his host family introduced him to Japanese Taiko drumming. After graduating from Drake University in 2010, Tanis joined the Japan America Society of Iowa and co-founded Iowa’s only Japanese Taiko preforming ensemble. Since then, Tanis has traveled to New York, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and Japan to visit other Taiko groups and take lessons from professional Taiko performers. Today, Tanis continues to practice Taiko drumming and learn about other related activities/items associated with Taiko.
Chikako Brown
はじめまして。
Chikako Brown moved to West Des Moines with four children and her West Des Moines native husband in 2009. She became a member of JASI in 2010 where she met the founder of the Japanese Language School in Iowa. Chikako served as JASI’s secretary from 2011 to 2013 and was involved in establishing the Japanese language program in the spring of 2012. Now she serves as a principal of Manabiya Iowa to promote Japanese language and culture for young students in the area. She enjoys cooking, reading, crafting and training in Karate in which she holds a black belt in Shito Ryu Karate.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & MANABIYA IOWA
Amanda Gran
Bio coming soon.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & SOTEN TAIKO
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & TEAHOUSE PROJECT
Born in southside Chicago and raised in Des Moines. My love of woodworking came to the attention of my parents at an young age. I enrolled in Cabinetmaking/Furniture Building at Des Moines Technical High School and finished at the top of my class. A family trip to Japan while in High School brought a second love of Japan and Japanese woodworking. In 1984 I started Teaching Home Remodeling for the Des Moines Public Schools at the new Central Campus building. Later I took over the Carpentry/Home Building program. It was during this time that Jo and John Wetherell approached me about the Yamamoto Tea House restoration. The interior of the Yamamoto Tea House is complete and on display at the Japan American Society of Iowa headquarters in Franklin Junior High, 48 th street and Franklin Ave, Des Moines, Iowa. We are working with leaders of Des Moines and Polk County to find a more public location for the Yamaoto Tea House.
Ben Molloy
Tomomi Fujimaru
Bio coming soon.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Takeshi Hayasaka
Takeshi Hayasaka, born and raised in Miyagi prefecture located 200 miles north of Tokyo, the capital of Japan, came to Des Moines in August 2022, as a cultural coordinator of the Japan Outreach Initiative program. He focuses on sharing Japanese culture with the local communities, and supporting his host organization, Japan America Society of Iowa. He loves travelling abroad and has visited 12 countries: New Zealand, Indonesia, Colombia, Korea, Canada, America, Belarus, Russia, Hungary, France, Monaco, and Italy. He believes his personality was formed through the experiences from these trips. He is looking forward to meeting new friends at his presentations.
JOI CULTURE COORDINATOR