Japanese American Social Services, Inc. (JASSI)

<p>JASSI was the brainchild of the late Midori Shimanouchi Lederer, a former publicist, who was nearly of retirement age herself when she became aware of gaps in social services for Japanese senior citizens, largely owing to language and cultural barriers.</p>

<p>Together with a young community-minded attorney, Cyril Nishimoto, and a 70 years old Nisei, Kimi Shimizu (who had lived in New York since before WWII), along with the wives of Japanese businessman, she formed Japanese American Social Services, Inc. in 1981.</p>

The Japanese American Social Services, Inc. (JASSI) was formed in 1981 by Midori Shimanouchi Lederer to address the lack of social services for aging Japanese Americans with limited English language skills and little access to information about social service programs. Starting with a staff of three workers, JASSI quickly grew to encompass assistance for a broad range of needs, including legal and immigration issues and family problems, expanding beyond just elder Japanese Americans. Currently the only professional social services agency for the Japanese community on the East Coast, the organization provides information or referral services to a wide range of Japanese Americans, including restaurant workers, students, recent immigrants, and those in need of counseling or other referral services in the New York area.