Dear Members,

It took a while, but a new BoD now represents the FCCJ and held its first meeting on August 9. I will serve as president, Khaldon Azhari as First Vice President, Randy Schmidt as Second Vice President, Anthony Rowley as Treasurer, and David Umeda as Secretary. Completing our directors are Shuri Fukunaga, Taeko Nagayama, Suvendrini Kakuchi, and outgoing President Dave McCombs, and Simon Farrell as Kanji. Milton Isa will serve as Reserve Director.

There is one open Kanji position and I hope to be able to update on next steps for this role shortly, as well as who will lead our many FCCJ Committees.

I'd like to thank outgoing BoD members Secretary Anthony Trotter, 2nd Vice President Ilgin Yorulmaz, and Kanji Monzurul Huq for service over the last year, as well as Yoshisuke Iinuma, ex-officio Peter Elstrom, and Martin Fackler, who led the Election Committee.

There is much to do before summer ends, but in my first note, I promise the new BoD will share tangible plans and results in our next communication on how to improve Membership value. We will hold an informal "Meet and Greet" with Membership and Directors at the Club on August 23 to hear your views and just say hello; this is intended to literally remove any borders between we volunteers and you, the Membership, to build a better Club ahead and make change.

Leading this organization is full of challenges, but thankfully we have a very dedicated Club staff and General Manager, a new BoD eager to make changes that return luster to a crown of journalism in Japan, and a deep determination to make FCCJ Membership a more valuable experience.

I encourage you to reach out to me or any BoD member on your ideas for our organization, particularly if you want to be part of our many FCCJ Committees and events - we absolutely need you. I will be at the Club as often as possible, including the August 14 showing of "From Okinawa with Love," so don't hesitate to introduce yourself directly or set up a meeting. I will also attend memorial events we will conduct in September to celebrate some great Club members who recently passed away, a PAC lunch for Japanese baseball pioneer Masanori "Mashi" Murakami on September 2, and a documentary by Ema Ryan Yamazaki, entitled "Instruments of a Beating Heart," which goes behind the scenes of Japanese elementary school education life, on September 30. This is one of many offerings from our distinguished Film Committee led by Karen Severns that are popular and always free.

In close, on behalf of the new BoD, we look forward to working with you, deeply appreciate for your commitment to the FCCJ's success, and promise a better, stronger Club ahead. Stay tuned.

Sincerely,
Dan Sloan
FCCJ President