JACS Mission

Our Mission

The Japanese American Community Services of Southern California (JACS) provides financial support to "emerging" groups and projects in the greater Los Angeles area, with a focus on community service, health and human services, cultural arts and leadership development.

Underlying JACS' criteria for giving is the goal of supporting individuals and groups that aim to empower the Asian Pacific Islander community toward greater ecomonic and political self-sufficiency and artistic expression.

The origins of JACS can be traced back to Shonien, a Los Angeles-based children's home and day nursery for Japanese immigrants in the early 1900s. After World War II and the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans, the Shonien re-directed its focus to provide family and community social services, and eventually became the Japanese American Community Services of Southern California, Inc. in 1961.

The Shonien home was sold and proceeds placed in a trust fund. Since then, JACS has provided funds to a broad range of community and social services groups serving the Nikkei and Asian Pacific American communities.

Cecilia Nakamura was a 2nd generation Japanese American who studied costume design, music, and dance. Working as a tailor for the Hollywood film industry for many years, she continued to enjoy the arts throughout her life until she passed away in 2006.

The Cecilia Nakamura Arts Fund, established in 2007, provides grants to individual artists and arts organizations in Southern California whose work is grounded in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.

For more information about Cecilia Nakamura, click here.