Yasuko Sakamoto and Bill Watanabe

UCLA Luskin Social Welfare invites all alumni to a reception and short program honoring the 2024 Joseph A. Nunn Social Welfare Alumni of the Year: Yasuko Sakamoto, MSW ’83, and Bill Watanabe, MSW ’72.

As two of three original staff members at the Little Tokyo Service Center, Watanabe and Sakamoto worked together for over 32 years to provide linguistically and culturally sensitive social and mental health services, affordable housing and community development to the Japanese American community in Southern California.

Their legacy includes the ongoing work of more than 120 MSW interns who were guided by their exceptional mentorship and embodiment of social work values and ethics.

UCLA Luskin Social Welfare is honoring “the visionary leadership and commitment to social justice demonstrated by Watanabe and Sakamoto, whose impact has been felt nationally, in the Asian American Pacific Islander community and beyond.”

The event will be held Saturday, June 8, from 12 to 2 p.m. at Terasaki Budokan, 249 S. Los Angeles St. in Little Tokyo.

RSVP by June 2. Go to www.eventbrite.com and search for “Joseph A. Nunn Award.”