2012 Scholarship Winners

The 2012 Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival Community Service Scholarship Committee is very please to announce the two recipients of the $2,000 scholarships. They are Lindsey Anne Keiko Wong of Sacramento and Kristy Ishii  of Salinas. Public presentation of the scholarships will be made at the 2012 Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival Opening Ceremony on April 14, 2012, Peace Plaza Stage, San Francisco Japantown.

LINDSEY ANNE KEIKO WONG

Lindsey Anne Keiko Wong is a senor at C. K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento. She is the daughter of Jan Okimoto Wong and Samuel Wong of Sacramento. She has a 4.3 weighted grade point average and has not received acceptance notices from several universities but has already received admission notice form UC San Diego, UC Davis and UC Irvine. She plans a field of study will be in Environmental Science and will continue for a graduate degree. She is straight “A” student and she is ranked 1 out of 491 graduating seniors. In the community, she has been involved with Habitat for Humanity, Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief, Harvest Sacramento, American River Clean-up, Earth Week, Alliance for Climate Education, Eco Jam which benefits Wildlife Care Association and Friends of the River, and Strive for Strength which has a mission to inform, educate and empower young women. In addition, she has been a tutor for students at the Peter Burnett Elementary School Reading Program, a volunteer at the Asian Community Center Nursing Home and teacher’s assistant at the Sacramento Buddhist Church Dharma School. She is also a member of the Sakura Minyo Doo Koo Kai Japanese Fold Song and Dance Society which performs annually at the Cherry Blossom Festival.

In May 2011, Lindsey received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from Congresswoman Doris Matsui for her involvement in various organizations. In January 2012, she received the Violet Richardson Award from the Sacramento Chapter of the Soroptimist International for her outstanding community service in the City of Sacramento. She write in her essay that “her greatest honor is the opportunity to work with others to make a difference.” Reflecting on her Japanese and Chinese heritage, she wrote “as almost all of us derive from immigrant families, I know the American dream is pursued by all of us, and each minority community has made significant contributions in building America.”

Lindsey was voted by her classmates in her graduating class to receive the “Most Like to Make a Difference” Award. She is the President of the school Japanese Culture Club, Co-President of the school Ecology Club, and a member of the school’s Science and Technology Robotics Team. She has taken six Advanced Placement classes and was selected to attend the UC San Diego Oceans and Global Climate Change Concentration Program and the UC Santa Cruz Marine Mammals and Oceanography Concentration program.

KRISTY ISHII

Kristy Ishii is a senior at Salinas High School. She is the daughter of Linden and Janice Ishii of Salinas. She has a weighted grade point average of 4.49 and is ranked 1 of 562 graduating seniors. Kristy is a straight “A” student and has taken seven Advanced Placement classes. She has not received acceptance letters from all of the universities that she has applied to but has received acceptance notices from Santa Clara University, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, and UC San Diego. She plans to study Business/ International Relations and/or Political Science. In the community, Kristy has been very active in the Salinas Jr. JACL serving as President for two of those years, teacher’s aid in the Hikari No Gakko program, Student Ambassador in the Salinas Ishiki-Kushikino Sister City program and spent two weeks in Japan, and activities director the past 3 years for the Buddhist Temple of Salinas YBA.

Kristy has taken several years of piano and says that it is one of her favorite hobbies. Her Advanced Placement English teacher writes in his letter of recommendation that Kristy is “not the passive type, rather she is one who is built on action”. Recently Kristy organized a presentation by Mas Hashimoto, an advocate for civil rights, to over 600 students at Salinas High School. The teacher writes that “not only was it received well by students and staff alike, it was an event that reflects the values and beliefs that Kristy hold dear. What I respect most about Kristy is her ability to move forward without forgetting her past.”

Kristy has also been the Captain for the Varsity Softball team for 2 years, most Valuable Defensive Player for the Varsity Soccer team, has received the Scholar Athlete Award from the California Scholarship Federation. She has been involved with the Link Crew program for the past three years, a program designed to mentor incoming freshmen to the school.

For further information, please call Steven Hirabayashi, (510) 471-7324 or email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it