New York Tomonkai

About the New York Tomonkai

The New York Tomonkai was established in 1970 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020. Currently, it has about 430 members. We hold various events throughout the year, and more than 100 people participate in the annual general meeting, which is the largest of our events. We are deepening our ties with our eternal rival and colleague, the New York Mitakai, and we hold events such as golf competitions (twice a year) and Waseda-Keio girls’ parties. In recent years, we are deepening friendship with the Tomonkais in other areas within North America, and are also holding activities in areas outside New York, as well as holding lectures on cultures, setting up opportunities to watch baseball games together, planning fishing events, and engaging in volunteer activities in order to broaden the communities the members serve. We are actively holding events to keep the ties made regardless of generation or industry, by holding events and providing information online, as it is now difficult to hold in-person events because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keiko Matsubara (Graduated in 2003, School of Letters, Arts and Sciences)

The attractive points of New York

“Her students change from year to year, Meet and part with youth’s delight, Yet all alike we seek to share These ideals and their light.”

As you all know, this is a part of our alma mater. Meeting and parting with people come one after another, not only at this Tomonkai but in this city, and this part of our alma mater touches our hearts.

These days, information on New York is everywhere, whether it is true or not. However, when we face the situation in which people, languages, and food of various kinds actually coexist in this scale and density, we are daunted by the breadth and depth of this city.

The philosophy and the history of the U.S. can be observed in the composition of this city. Urban blocks which are of equal size are easy to convert into numbers, and the city is growing higher and higher as if its components are competing against each other within such blocks. The density of this city has become higher and higher. The lifestyle of those in these overpopulated blocks has continued to accelerate, and this city has always been far ahead of others in this regard.

I asked one of the billionaires. “You can select any city or any island around the world, as you can work or live anywhere in this world today. Why you do stick to New York City?” The answer was in only one word. “People.”
Yutaka Takiura (Graduated in 1989, School of Science and Engineering)

Message from the Chairperson

I was planning to give the position of Chairperson to a successor after my four-year term, but the term was extended for one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, we held the annual general meeting, whose format has been changed from in-person to online. We utilized the merits of online meetings and strengthened the ties between our members with the participation of President of our university Aiji Tanaka from Japan, Ambassador of Japan to the U.S. Shinsuke Sugiyama from Washington D.C., and former members of the New York Tomonkai who currently live in Japan.

For the past few years, I have had the impression that we are moving toward a period in which former values and behavior patterns undergo a drastic change. Since the onset of the pandemic, the whole world has been rapidly changing. The flow stemming from such change has washed out successful experiences and knowledge gained previously, and new values are being born. People around the globe are trying to explore the way we handle our online world and real world, and the way we communicate with others.

The New York Tomonkai asked other Tomonkais throughout the world to join it in holding remotely the first overseas Tomonkai world networking event on December 12, 2020. I will be handing over the privilege of holding the event to another overseas Tomonkai, as I am hoping this will be continued as a remotely-held event where we confirm the ties among our alumni living throughout the world.
Nobuyoshi Kimoto (Graduated in 1987, School of Social Sciences)

Messages from the Members

Many events are held throughout the year and the number of members is continuing to increase at this Tomonkai, and I am enjoying playing an active role in cooperation with many people. There are events unique to a Tomonkai in New York, such as volunteer activities at the New York City Marathon and parties held while we enjoy the night view of Manhattan. As there are people from various industries, there are many precious opportunities where we can talk casually with those who we cannot normally see in Japan. In the year before last, we had a great time at a gathering where we invited a special guest, Ambassador of Japan to the U.S. Shinsuke Sugiyama (who is an alumnus), who came to New York for the U.N. general assembly. We hope to continue to broaden our interesting community by utilizing the Tomonkai’s action-taking ability and its connections.
Miho Akada (Graduated in 1995, School of Law)

The New York Yankees is an extremely popular MLB team among New Yorkers. Among the Japanese players who took active roles, I believe Hideki Matsui, who has received World Series MVP honors and the People’s Honor Award, and Masahiro Tanaka, who actively played in the team as an ace pitcher, are especially loved by the local people.

There is a Tomonkai event where you can meet Hideki Matsui. We all watch a baseball game by a New York Yankees minor league (second team or lower) team, and Hideki Matsui, one of the coaches, will come to greet us. Everyone will have a big smile at unusual experiences such as seeing him joking and feeling his warmth as a person. Each family took pictures with him, and this event turned out to be a great memory for us for the summer vacation.

We could not hold this popular event in 2020 because of COVID-19, however, we are hoping to continue holding this exchange event with Mr. Matsui, one of the greatest heroes in New York.
Kazuhide Kaga (Graduated in 1991, School of Education)

I am widely involved in the events of the Tomonkai such as a gathering with an Ambassador of Japan to the U.S. and Waseda girls’ parties. Every time we see each other, I am given stimuli by the members of the Tomonkai, who are full of energy. The Tomonkai is a precious community where we can get to know people of various ages and industries, who are thriving in New York’s tough environment. The Tomonkai, however, is a casual group, and one of its attractive points is that we can enjoy conversations with everyone in a friendly manner, just like the way we used to do in Takadanobaba in our student days.
Yasuko Miki (Graduated in 2010, School of Humanities and Social Sciences)

Covered in Waseda Gakuho, April 2021 Issue

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