Board Members
Dana Heatherton
Co-Chair
Dana Fujiko Heatherton is Chief Operating Officer of GIG Car Share, the nation's largest freefloating car share company. She has been actively involved in the Japanese American community through her work as Regional Chair of the U.S. Japan Council, founder of the Japanese American National Museum's New Leadership Advisory Council, Executive Board Member of Little Tokyo Service Center, Co-Lead for the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo's official business plan competition, organizer of Japan Food Festival - Houston, and Nisei Week Queen in Los Angeles. She resides in San Francisco with her husband, Dr. Andrew Kenji Folick, and 6 year-old son Kazuo.
Mia Russell
Co-Chair
Mia Russell serves as Manager of Special Initiatives at the Japanese American National Museum. Mia previously served as manager of the Japanese American Confinement Sites Consortium, and executive director of Friends of Minidoka, the nonprofit dedicated to preserving the Minidoka WWII Japanese American incarceration site where she developed a walking tour mobile app for Minidoka National Historic Site, co-authored Minidoka National Historic Site (Images of America), and was Executive Producer of the broadcast documentary Betrayed: Surviving an American Concentration Camp. She serves on the LA Next Generation Japanese American Leaders Initiative founded by the Consul General of Japan in Los Angeles. She also participated in the 2022 cohort of the U.S.-Japan Council’s Emerging Leaders Program. She is a proud shin-Nikkei of mixed heritage.
Douglas Ichiuji was born in Washington D.C., to Japanese American Nisei Joseph Ichiuji and Asako Tsuda Ichiuji. With more than 30 years of progressive management positions in Government and industry, Doug has held senior leadership roles at the U.S. Department of Treasury, Visa Inc, and U.S. Bank. He is proud to serve on the board of the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation.
Douglas Ichiuji
Co-Vice Chair & Treasurer
Mark Nakagawa
Co-Vice Chair
Mark T. Nakagawa serves as a Civil Servant supporting the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community. Prior to his retirement from the U.S. Army, he served in various leadership and staff positions throughout the world. He served as an officer and is a member of the Executive Committee for the Japanese American Veterans Association (JAVA) continuing the mission of educating the American public about the Japanese-American experience during World War II. He is also a council leader for the US – Japan Council (USJC).
Rhianna Chung is a digital marketing and public relations strategist. She develops digital advertising strategies, manages digital ad operations and delivers strategic earned media coverage for her clients as an account manager at iQ 360. Her diverse experience includes five years in the Army National Guard and a stint at The Denver Post, where she designed and launched advertising campaigns for top brands.
Rhianna Chung
Secretary
Kristine Minami
Kristine Miyeko Minami has always been involved in the Japanese American community. As a child, she participated in local events organized by the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and, in college, wrote her senior thesis on the effects of the internment on the Japanese American family structure. She has worked for the Asia Foundation, the Japan Society and the JACL as its Director for Public Affairs. Kristine has also served on the JACL national board as governor for the Eastern District Council and as a supervisor for the JACL’s Kakehashi program. Currently, Kristine is a civil rights attorney working for the federal government. She is a native of Washington, DC and lives in Maryland with her husband and son.
Rosie Abriam
Rosie Abriam is the past President/CEO for The Center for Asian Pacific American Women. Her career has spanned roles in government and corporate entities. She was honored as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipinas in America and received the WWAAC (Who’s Who in Asian American Communities) Award. She is also an APAWLI (Asian Pacific American Women’s Leadership Institute) Fellow. Rosie received her inka shomei (Mind Stamp) as an 87th generation Zen master of Daihonzan Chozen-ji in Honolulu, HI. She currently lives in California with her husband.
Allen Goshi
Allen (Al) Goshi, raised in Hawai’i, was inspired by uncles who served in Japanese American Army units during World War II, and also by the wartime court challenges to the unconstitutional incarceration of Japanese Americans. Al followed both callings. After graduating from West Point, he served a full career in the U.S. Army. Since retiring from the Army, he has been a managing attorney in a large Federal agency. He has also been an officer in the Japanese American Veterans Association along with other Asian Pacific community groups and veterans’ organizations.
Viva Aya Mogi
Viva Mogi is the Director of Strategic Programs & Policy Development at Long Beach Unified School District. She brings a unique and exceptional background in both education and government, having spent the last decade holding positions in both arenas including preschool teacher, legislative aide to City elected officials, leading government relations for an early-stage startup and at one of California's top lobbying and government relations firm. She was also the National Field Director for APIAVote, a national organization focusing on voting rights and voter education.
Anne Oda
Anne Oda is a recent retiree from the corporate world, who has had the privilege of following her personal passions of practicing the Urasenke tradition of Japanese tea ceremony and Kimekomi doll making. Her vision is to introduce the rich Japanese American culture and history to the community at large guided by the four principles of the Urasenke tradition; Wa (Harmony), Kei (Respect), Sei (Purity) and Jaku (Tranquility). She notes that “sharing one’s heart through a simple bowl of tea can be transforming and creates opportunities for conversation to educate others about the contributions of the Japanese American tapestry, which includes my late Uncle Hiroshi F. Nagano who was one of the many killed in action in Italy in 1945.”
Gil Asakawa
Gil Asakawa is a journalist, editor, author and blogger who covers Japan, Japanese American and Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) culture and social justice issues. He is a nationally-known speaker, panelist and expert on Japanese American and Asian American history and identity. He is past president of the Mile High Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and was Editorial Board Chair of the Pacific Citizen newspaper and a national board member of JACL. In 2023, Asakawa was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays for his contribution improving the social status of Japanese Americans in the U.S. and promoting understanding of Japan.
Carolyn Hoover
Carolyn Hoover is an investment banker, content creator, and competitive athlete. As the granddaughter of two Japanese American incarcerees, Carolyn has been committed to the NJAMF mission since childhood. In high school, she earned her Girl Scout Gold Award through creating a digital tour of the Memorial and was selected by the Foundation as part of the first cohort of students to go to Heart Mountain Wyoming to film a Digital Storytelling Project. She was also selected by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to visit Japan as a student ambassador to further the relationship between Japan and the U.S. and served as the Treasurer for the American Executive Committee of the Japan America Student Conference (JASC).
Eric Muller
Eric Muller, the Dan K. Moore Distinguished Professor in Jurisprudence and Ethics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is one of the nation’s leading scholars of the removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans in World War II. He has published many articles on the topic and four books, including most recently Lawyer, Jailer, Ally, Foe: Complicity and Conscience in America’s World War II Concentration Camps (University of North Carolina Press 2023). He became a member of the Board of Directors of the Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation, eventually co-chairing the committee that curated the award winning core historical exhibit at the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center when it opened in 2011. He also created a podcast entitled Scapegoat Cities that narrates stories of Japanese American families in the camps he has uncovered in the archives during his many years of research. Muller has been committed to preserving the memory of the Holocaust, most notably as Academic Director of the Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics (FASPE).
Grant Doty
Grant Doty served twenty years in the U.S. Army and attended night law school in anticipation of his military retirement. In his fifteen years as a second-career attorney, Grant has been driven to continue his “service” in a different forum – primarily by engaging in the protection of constitutional, civil, and statutory rights of marginalized, vulnerable, and underserved clients. He is honored to be a board member of NJAMF.
Jason I. Kuroiwa serves as an independent consultant and executive advisor. Following in his family’s service and sacrifice from World War II to Vietnam, Jason is a 25 year U.S. Army veteran who passionate about informing and educating communities about challenges from our past to prevent a repeat in our future. Jason also serves on the board of other non-profit, government, and private organizations. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi with his family.
Jason I. Kuroiwa
Jeffrey Masao Moy
Jeffrey Masao Moy is a nonprofit professional with experience leading organizations and initiatives with a focus on equity and leadership development. He has been actively involved in the Asian American Pacific Islander community, including serving two terms as National President of the Japanese American Citizens League from 2018-2022. A yonsei from Annapolis, MD, Jeffrey currently resides in San Francisco with his family