40^th Award of Honor Gala

The Japan Society has been Kathleen’s life since 1974 when she joined as an individual member. A few years later, her husband Kozo’s company, Tokyo Express Co., Inc. joined as a corporate member. She was elected to the board of directors in 1989 and immediately chaired the Outreach Committee, followed by the Japan Women’s Group, and chaired a number of galas. She was elected president of the board and served from 1995-97, haivng previously been elected Vice President, then President-Elect. From 1995 until about 2007 she served on the board of the National Association of Japan America Societies (NAJAS). Kathleen received the Consul General of Japan’s Award in 2011, the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation in 2013 and in 2014 was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays by the Emperor of Japan. In 1995 she joined the Japan Society UK, which organization was established in 1891. She visited the Japan Society in the UK and met with the then chair, Sir Hugh Cortazzi, a renowed historian and a former UK Ambassador to Japan. He gave advice on our first history book, published in 1995 to commemorate the Society’s 90th anniversary and again in 2001 when the Society celebrated the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951.

Kathleen chairs the Millbrae Japanese Culture Festival, established in 2007. She co-founded the California-Japan Sister Cities Network in 2018. Kathleen serves as Chair of the Millbrae Sister Cities Commission and, since 1997, as Co-Chair of the San Francisco-Osaka Sister City Association. She also serves as Vice President of the NORCAL Sister Cities International board.

Her outside activities have included being Chair and President of the British American Business Council (2001-2008) and continues to serve on its board. While in that leadership role she served as the Western Regional Representative of the British American Business Council bi-lateral network and served on its bi-lateral board. She was awarded an MBE by her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2006.

She has also served as president of the British Benvolent Society (2012-2017), a charitable organization established in 1858, and continues to serve on that board.

Kathleen is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in London.

She has served on the US Support Committee of the Legion of the San Francisco Consular Corps (LSFCC), the spouses group of the San Francisco Consular Corps, since 2001.

She is married to Kozo Kimura, and they they have three adult children and two grandsons.