The remarkable legacy of Nisei soldiers is embodied by the busy calendar of events at the Nisei Veteran Memorial Center (NVMC), located on Go For Broke Way in Kahului, Maui. NVMC is a vital community gathering space serving the many communities of Maui.
On any given day there are exhibitions, cultural workshops, movie nights and classes for youth and seniors. In May, NVMC sponsored a trip to Japan to visit sister city Fukuyama and attend their rose festival.
Behind all of this is Deidre Tegarden, NVMC’s energetic executive director. She credits a team of volunteers and staff for making the center a success.
“We’re all doing multiple jobs — a lot if is fundraising, grant writing, reaching out to the community, love the programs we do movies once a month, workshops, speakers,” she explained. “We’re making sure we engage with the entire community, not only Japanese Americans.”
Tegarden joined NVMC for a second time in January 2020, bringing an extensive background in political engagement and community development. She first led NVMC as its executive director from 2016 to 2018, leaving at that time to serve as chief of staff for Maui County Mayor Michael Victorino. She also was the chief of protocol for Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie and Gov. David Ige and led Big Brothers Big Sisters Maui as its executive director.
In 2016, she ran unsuccessfully for the Hawaii State Legislature, but what turned out to be Hawaii’s loss was NVMC’s gain. She recalled a conversation with then-board chair Brian Moto.
“He said, ‘We really want you to win, but if you don’t you have a job on Monday,’” she recalled. “They took a big chance on me, I’m not JA and they’ve been very inclusive, very welcoming.”
“We are able to share the stories and sacrifices of our Nisei soldiers because of Melanie Agrabante, Archive Director. She has been with the NVMC before it was even built. She is the heart and soul of the organization and it is an honor to work with her,” Tegarden said.
At NVMC, Tegarden strives to bring that sense of team to all of their initiatives, inspired by a “Go For Broke” spirit that the Nisei soldiers would appreciate.
She praised Melanie Agrabante, NVMC archive director, who manages their treasure trove of artifacts and oral histories and is a passionate chronicler of the heroism of Nisei veterans. “Nisei Experience in WWII,” is currently on display at the NVMC Education Center. The exhibition examines the lives of the Nisei soldiers from the bombing of Pearl Harbor through the post-war era.
“We are able to share the stories and sacrifices of our Nisei soldiers because of Melanie Agrabante, Archive Director. She has been with the NVMC before it was even built. She is the heart and soul of the organization and it is an honor to work with her,” Tegarden said.
Leonard Oka, founder of NVMC and its board chair emeritus, praised Tegarden for broadening the mission of the center that was conceived as a way to honor the legacy of Maui’s Nisei veterans of World War II.
NVMC serves as a repository of oral histories and artifacts of the Nisei veterans Oka is the president of Sons and Daughters of Nisei Veterans and is also home to Kansha Preschool, Maui Adult Day Care Center’s Oceanview facility and the NVMC Education Center and Archives.
Oka explained that over the years, NVMC’s mission has evolved and diversified. Today NVMC seeks to “ignite the potential in people by inspiring them to find the hero in themselves through the legacy of the Nisei Veterans.”
Barbara Watanabe was the first executive director who oversaw the construction phase of the center. Each subsequent executive director has brought unique skills to the job.
“As things just progressed when Deidre came along the building basically was already up and her job was to do the programs and get the community involved and she did such a good job at it. She is very good with the public,” Oka said.
Oka has seen NVMC go from a vision of the sons and daughters of Nisei veterans for a building that preserves and honors the sacrifices of the AJA soldiers, to the vibrant center that supports the larger Maui community. He said a Japanese knife-sharpening class was an excellent example of the variety of programs offered by NVMC.
“Knife sharpening is something you wouldn’t expect to be in a Nisei veterans center. The cultural side is important, it’s broader than just the Nisei veterans themselves or the war. She thinks outside of the box,” Oka said.
“If we were still running it, we would still be focusing on the veterans of World War II. That’s important too — to remember the history, but again she broadened the scope of the mission.”
Tegarden credited the board for accepting and embracing change.
“The great thing is when we started bringing on the younger generation the older individuals didn’t say ‘Oh I don’t like their ideas,’ they embraced those ideas,” she said.
“The board is so great. They encourage and support and are there to help with ideas. That’s one of our messages, we don’t do anything alone. We always have help. It’s very okagesama de.”
While Teagarden has expanded NVMC’s mission, at its heart remains the story and values of the Nisei soldiers and their families.
“Look at all the people how have come before who are part of the story, Issei, Nisei, Sansei who made the story, the Japanese immigrants to Hawaii who created the Hawaii we know today. They were strong and powerful, yet quiet and diplomatic and gracious,” Tegarden said.