Hauoli Makahiki Ho! Feliz Ano Nuevo! Akemashite Omedeto Gozaimasu! Happy New Year! I hope that as you read this article, you will be more upbeat about 2026 as I am regarding our church. For starters, we’ve had a new family joining our membership at the close of 2025 and we continue to see more people at our Sunday services. Thank you to our regular attendees who not only attend the services, stay for our coffee/tea social hour, but also make others feel welcome at our temple. I may have said it before that if we make new people welcome, many will return for future services and activities. There may be some who feel that Jodo Shinshu is not a religion meant for them but for others, just being around people who see Buddhism as a means of finding peace within, they will become valuable Sangha members.

January is a time to acknowledge the passing of our founder, Shinran Shonin, whose Dharma messages were directed at commoners like you and me. We set aside January 16th as Go-Shoki Hoonko, or Shinran Shonin’s Memorial Day, and our Hoonko service is on Sunday, January 25th. We follow the memorial with our Annual Crab Feed on Saturday, January 31st from 5-7 pm. The Crab Feed has become our biggest fundraiser for the year, surpassing our Obon Festival in net income. If you would like to purchase a ticket or two ($90 each) or know of others who would like to do the same, please contact me at slobuddhistchurch@
gmail.com. We also need volunteers to help at the event either in the morning or evening so let me know if you are interested.

Our 100 Year Anniversary Planning Committee recently kicked off preparing for this milestone by having its first meeting. Members are enthusiastic about putting on a memorable event and would like you to save the date: February 7, 2027. We need photos, prints or digital, of the church, its members and activities for the program. More information to follow. We encounter wet and wintry weather, stay safe, healthy and enjoy your precious moments.
Namo Amida Butsu.

Gassho,
Gary Hongo