January 21, 2022 – 62nd Anniversary Celebration – Demonstration by Past Presidents

Happy New Year. Please join us in celebrating the 62nd Anniversary of Ikebana International San Francisco Bay Area Chapter. Due the recent surge in Covid infections, the program committee out of abundance of caution for the health of our members has decided to transition to the zoom meeting format. Our meeting will feature four past presidents as our demonstrators: Sharon Krawetz, Mitsuko Maruyama, Ron Brown and Thanh Nguyen.

Sharon Krawetz studies ikebana with Fusako Hoyrup. She holds the Gakukan degree from Wafu School and serves on the board of the California Wafukai Chapter. Sharon is the current and past President of Ikebana International San Francisco Chapter. She is also a member of the Ikebana Teachers Federation. She exhibits at both the San Francisco and Cupertino Cherry Blossom Festivals and provides a weekly arrangement at the Cupertino Sports Center.

Ron Brown began his studies in Sogetsu in 1979 and currently studies with Kika Shibata. He holds the rank of Komon. Ron has been a member of the I.I. San Francisco Bay Area Chapter for 40 years and has held many positions throughout his long association with the organization including past President. He is the Director of the Sogetsu San Francisco Bay Area Branch and a member of the Sogetsu Teacher’s Association in Tokyo. He is also on the Board of the Ikebana Teachers Federation.

Thanh Nguyen served as president of Ikebana International San Francisco for two terms from 2016-2018 and 2012-2014. Thanh holds Gakukan Degree in Wafu School of Ikebana. She started her ikebana training under the tutelage of Fusako Hoyrup more than thirty years ago. In 2014 she initiated “Ikebana for Youth” in local schools leading workshops for middle school students. This led to a major article published in the Ikebana International magazine from Tokyo Headquarters. Thanh exhibits her work at the annual Bouquets to Art. She also participated in exhibitions in Paris, Vietnam, Manila, Japan, and the United States.

Mitsuko Maruyama began her ikebana studies in 1971, in the Ohara School with Grandmaster Suiyo Fujimoto. In 2019, she received Ohara School’s Sub Grand Master degree. She currently teaches ikebana in Fremont. For more than 50 years, Maruyama has been an active member of several ikebana organizations. She is President of the Ohara Ikebana School of Northern California Chapter and a member of North American Ohara Teachers Association. She is past President of Ikebana International San Francisco Bay Area Chapter and the Ikebana Teachers Federation in Bay Area.

This program was presented live January 21, 2022 on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ikebanasf.

It was recorded and can be viewed here: