Nichi Bei Weekly

LOS ANGELES — Outside a small shop on the lower level of Little Tokyo Galleria, rows of succulents, bonsai and freshly cut flowers greet visitors with pastel hues and subtly sweet aromatics. For owner Yuka Mizusawa, the space is meant to feel like a moment of calm, a brief connection to nature in the middle of downtown Los Angeles. Little Tokyo Florist, an AAPI Japanese American-owned business, has served the neighborhood for decades.

Namiko Hirasawa Chen, better known as just Nami, is the go-to source for many foodies around the world who want to cook Japanese food at home. She was born in Japan and raised helping her mother cook meals, so she was a natural home chef. Her informative Website, Just One Cookbook (www.justonecookbook.com), launched in 2011, is the most popular online resource for Japanese food and cooking, with hundreds of recipes for everything from soups and sauces to sukiyaki and desserts.

LOS ANGELES — Michelle Hanabusa is the Yonsei Los Angeles-based creator of the fashion, accessory and home goods brand Uprisers. The female-founded company is dedicated to creating sustainable products that incorporate the stories of the local community around them. This year, Nichi Bei News is highlighting Uprisers for your holiday purchases. Hanabusa started Uprisers after realizing she wanted to enter the creative space.

CHIBA, Japan  — Japanese ace Roki Sasaki will be available to Major League Baseball teams this offseason. The Chiba Lotte Marines announced Nov. 9 they have chosen to start the process of moving the pitcher to a big league club in North America via the posting system. Sasaki, who turned 23 this month, is expected to become one of the most sought-after pitchers on the open market. The right-hander went 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games this year, striking out 129 hitters in 111 innings.

Grant Ujifusa, who served as the legislative strategy chair of the Japanese American Citizens League’s redress effort from 1982-92, died on Oct. 21 in Lafayette Hill, Pa, the nonprofit’s Pacific Citizen reported. He was 82. Ujifusa was among a team of many who advocated for President Ronald Reagan to sign the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.

By ANNALISE FREIMARCK San Jose Spotlight It’s an election year like none other, including the races for Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. The board is set to have an Asian American majority for the first time, with Betty Duong and Margaret Abe-Koga leading in Districts 2 and 5 respectively, slated to join Supervisor Otto Lee.

Satsuki Ina, one of the co-founders of Tsuru for Solidarity, often speaks about how, in working to support other communities that are under attack, we are also working to heal our own intergenerational trauma. But this month, I wasn’t prepared for how sharply those traumas can intersect. The day after the election, as my family sat down for dinner, my young son — who has both Japanese and Chinese ancestry — turned to me and his mom.

SOUTH DOS PALOS, Calif. — The shiny silver silos at Koda Farms still contain a small amount of Kokuho Rose, the varietal of heirloom rice beloved by culinary professionals and home cooks everywhere. By January, however, those last remaining bushels will be gone, shipped out as the Koda family winds down agricultural operations at their Central Valley homestead.

An East Bay man has been sentenced to prison after an Asian woman was robbed “because Asians are easy targets who don’t fight back,” according to federal prosecutors. Freddie Lee Davis III, 27, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft and was sentenced to two years in federal prison on Oct. 24. His co-defendant, Sene Malepeai, 27, pleaded guilty to the same charges and has yet to be sentenced, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Northern California said Oct. 25.

San Francisco police are asking for the public’s help in locating an 18-year-old woman last seen about 11 p.m. Oct. 31 in the area of Grove and Larkin streets. Mai Vue was described as Asian, 5 feet, 1 inch tall, weighing 110 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, police said Nov. 2. She was last seen wearing a white dress, black leggings and black high heels. Anyone who locates Vue is asked to call 911 and report her current location and physical description.