Happy New Year of the Tiger!

On behalf of the BCA Executive Committee, I would like to wish all of our BCA ministers, members, temples, and friends a Happy New Year! As I mention below, exciting things will be taking place in 2022.

On Dec. 4, 2021, the BCA National Board met virtually. The meeting began with the introduction of Dae Kim, a former member of the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple and a current Ph.D. candidate at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Kim will be studying the BCA and will be looking at how the BCA can increase its membership. In order to conduct his research, he will be speaking with ministers and temple leaders. If asked to participate in this project, please help Kim as much as you can.

The National Board approved the incoming slate of BCA officers for the 2022-2024 term. Terri Omori (Vista Buddhist Temple) will automatically move up from the president-elect position to become the new BCA president. She will be the first woman to become BCA president in BCA’s history. The National Board voted to have Steve Terusaki (Buddhist Church of Oakland) become the next president-elect, Glenn Inanaga (Orange County Buddhist Church) and John Arima (Mountain View Buddhist Temple) become the vice presidents, Darlene Bagshaw (Buddhist Church of Stockton) continue as the secretary, and Jeff Matsuoka (Buddhist Church of San Francisco) continue as the treasurer.

The National Board approved the proposed 2022-2023 budget, which includes $1,918,290 coming from BCA member dues. Assuming the BCA membership remains the same, this would translate into $162 per member. This budget includes increasing the Jodo Shinshu Center (JSC) Facility Assistant Manager position from part-time to full time BCA Facilities Assistant Manager. We will also hire a quarter-time BCA Ministers’ Group Benefits Coordinator. The dues amount includes the amount needed for the Capital Building Maintenance Fund that covers all the BCA properties.

Rev. Dr. David Matsumoto, President of the Institute of Buddhist Studies (IBS), reported that 56 students were enrolled in the 2021 fall semester. This is the largest number of students that IBS has ever had enrolled. Included are six ministerial aspirants.

Hideaki Mizuno, Executive Director of the BCA Endowment Foundation, told the National Board that from January through October in 2021, the assets under management increased to more than $47.5 million. From January through October in 2021, the Growth Portfolio increased by 10.4 percent, the Growth and Income Portfolio increased by 7.2 percent and the Income Portfolio increased by 1.4 percent. The National Board voted to approve the nomination of Jeff Folick for the BCA National Service Award.

Celeste Sterrett, chair of the Social Welfare Committee, reported that since April 1, 2021, the committee has awarded $70,528 to organizations and projects that were proposed by the committee or temple organizations. More than $300,000 is held in the Social Welfare Fund. Most recently, the committee awarded $5,000 to each of the following organizations: Doctors without Borders, the Gary Sinese Foundation, the Trevor Project, and the American Red Cross.

Judy Kono, chair of the Communications Committee, told the National Board that the following workshop videos could be accessed through the BCA website: “How to Utilize Social Media at Your Temple,” “How to Livestream Your Temple Services,” “Marketing Your Temple,” and “Building a Temple Website.”

Glenn Inanaga, Chair of the Bylaws and Legal Committee, informed the National Board that AB 506 required all organizations in California that deal with children and minors to have their leaders (who are mandatory reporters of child abuse) undergo mandatory training about child abuse and pass background checks that include fingerprinting or using the Live Scan system.

Although this must be completed by Jan. 1, 2022, California temple leaders who may be affected by this law (ministers, Dharma School teachers, Scout leaders, Junior YBA leaders, and language school teachers) should be working on getting the requirements completed as soon as possible. The state of California website has more information on this and there is an insurance company webinar dealing with this law taking place in early January. Please contact Gayle Noguchi at BCA Headquarters if you are interested in attending this webinar.