2026 AGM Announcement
Sunday, February 8, 2026 – 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Esquimalt Recreation Centre
Please join us for us our Annual General Meeting. We will review what the VNCS accomplished in 2025, look at our financial status, introduce some initiatives for 2026, and elect our 2026 Board. The AGM will be held at the Esquimalt Rec Centre, 527 Fraser Street (Craigflower Room).
NOTE: To vote at the AGM you must be a paid up member of the VNCS. You can pay your membership at the AGM or do it online through our Web site. Plan to arrive by 9:00am to register.
9:00 am – Registration Check In
9:30 am – Call to order
- Territory Acknowledgement
- Approval of Agenda
- Approval of Minutes of Annual General Meeting held Feb 2nd, 2025 (Link to last Year’s AGM Minutes)
9:45 am – Annual Reports
NOTE: Report links to be posted by January 17th.
Governance/Administration
Reports that will be presented:
1. President’s Report – Debbie Ibaraki (Acting)
2. Treasurer’s Report – Shinichi Tanaka
3. Membership Report – Margaret Cooke & Joanne Rollins
4. Communications (Newsletter, Social Media etc.) Report – Yukari Peerless & Craig Mercer
5. Japanese Cultural Fair Report – Craig Mercer & Yukari Peerless
Committees/Activity Groups
Reports that will not be presented but are available to the membership:
- Heritage Committee
- Human Rights Committee
- JC Legacy Projects – Senkusha
- Youngsei/Young Leaders
- Furusato Dancers
- Ikebana Classes
- Japanese Language Classes
- National Association of Japanese Canadians
- Uminari Taiko
Note: We are looking to host an “Open House” type event in March/April that will allow members to come and interact with all of our various groups, ask questions of all the in flight work going on and learn about upcoming volunteer opportunities. This is an effort to engage the membership more meaningfully and reduce the length of the AGM.
10:45 am – Break
11:05 am – Election of Officers and Directors
Further nominations can be submitted. To nominate a candidate, a Nomination Form (available through our Website) must be completed and submitted to VNCS at info@vncs.ca OR candidates can be nominated from the floor at the AGM. The nominee must be present and a Nomination Form completed.
11:35 am – Business Meeting Adjournment
11:45 am – Light Snacks/Coffee Time/Meet the new Board
12:30 pm – Closing & Clean up
Candidate Director Bios
Hanna Knudsen
Hanna Knudsen (she/her) is a shin nisei who grew up here on the land of the Songhees and Esquimalt nations. She currently sits on the Japanese Canadian Young Leaders Committee and is involved with the Victoria Youngsei group. By being on the board she hopes to be a bridge between shin Nikkei and Nikkei communities.
Kisae Petersen
Kisae Petersen is a sansei on her mother’s side of the family. Her great grand-parents were Shiga and Nagano families and her grandparents were Minatogawa and they came in the early 1900’s to Vancouver. During internment, most of her family was in Lillooet and then resettled in Vernon.
Kisae grew up in Cowichan Bay and then lived on Salt Spring Island to raise her two sons. Three years ago, Kisae moved to Victoria to begin a new chapter of her life. She has connected to VNCS through many heritage activities and the Japanese Cultural Fair, where she was the Finance Coordinator last year.
In her professional life, Kisae has worked in the non-profit sector for over 20 years. She has held financial management, fund development and senior leadership positions with a focus on social services, gender based violence, transitional and affordable housing and youth at risk. She is currently the Operations Director at the Victoria Youth Empowerment Society.
As a life-long volunteer, Kisae has also served on many charitable boards as secretary, treasurer and chair. Kisae will bring her knowledge of bookkeeping, grant writing and financial management to her role as Treasurer for VNCS.
Teruyo Sano
Teruyo Sano was born and raised in Japan and moved to Canada with a strong desire to share Japanese culture with the local community. Before coming to Canada, she studied the art of wearing kimono so she could properly introduce and represent traditional Japanese culture abroad. She first moved to Montreal, where she began her taiko journey with Arashi Daiko.
In 2002, Teruyo relocated to Victoria, shortly after Uminari Taiko was established. She joined both Uminari Taiko and the Victoria Nikkei Cultural Society (VNCS), contributing a wide range of repertoire and experience gained from her time in Montreal. In 2006, she also became a founding member of the Furusato Dancers, continuing her dedication to preserving and sharing Japanese traditional performing arts.
Beyond performance, Teruyo has been deeply involved in cultural and educational activities within the community. She taught at the Victoria Japanese Heritage Language School for ten years and supported the children’s chorus program following her classes. Throughout these years, she has been sincerely grateful for the ongoing support of VNCS in sustaining these cultural initiatives.
With a strong appreciation for the community that has supported her work, Teruyo hopes to give back by serving on the VNCS Board and contributing to the continued growth and vitality of Japanese culture in Victoria.
