With the SGI-USA’s 2025 focus on fostering friendship, building community and raising successors, the World Tribune sat down with Tanushree Salvi-Young, the Northwest Mountain Region young women’s leader, to hear about how members in Boise are building friendship and community.
World Tribune:Tanushree, thank you for talking with us. Please tell us a little about your SGI community in Boise, Idaho.
Tanushree Salvi-Young: Yes, Boise encompasses Southwest Idaho Chapter, which includes two districts. Some members travel 45 minutes to an hour to attend their district discussion meetings. One member travels 100 miles round trip twice a month to attend district activities!
In general, Boise is a place where young people move for school or work, but don’t often stick around. On the other hand, we have many retirees moving in to escape the hustle and bustle of big city life. Our wonderful SGI community reflects this, and we have wrestled with the challenges of keeping young people practicing in the region.
WT: But recently youth have started to come out. What changed?
Tanushree: Yes! The chapter team started chanting daimoku together for the youth to emerge and made it a point to treasure each young person who showed up to SGI activities.
For example, one young woman came to a March youth gathering two years ago. At the time, we exchanged numbers, and I slowly started reaching out to her. She was hesitant to come out to meetings, but we developed a friendship. Over time, she became active enough to lead the March youth meeting. Now, we text each other every morning before we chant. It’s been so immensely helpful to have her encourage me in this way!
Photo courtesy of Tanushree Salvi-Young.
WT: What was the key?
Tanushree: For me, it was about developing friendship. I came to a point where I felt like I wanted to be the type of friend who she could reach out to whenever she was struggling and that I could, in turn, connect her to Ikeda Sensei’s encouragement as the power source for victory. Through our daily morning texts we are creating a strong friendship based on faith.
Recently, another young woman moved into the area. Her family member practices Buddhism in another part of the country and put us in touch. She came to our chapter kickoff meeting.
Since then, I have been opening my home every Saturday morning for the three of us to get together, do slow gongyo and chant, study and eat breakfast. We have become great friends, and both young women are now actively participating in discussion meetings!
The women’s support has also been so incredible. Because the members are so far apart, the district women’s leaders play a key role in supporting the youth throughout the region.
WT: How does the presence of young people impact the district?
Tanushree: They bring a fresh energy to all of the members. In January, for the first time in a very long time, we had five youth attend our discussion meeting, including two youth guests. They bring a new perspective. I’ve already asked the youth guests what they would like to do for the March discussion meeting.
Last year I was encouraged to make the district meetings a place where we could have fun! So as a leadership team, we started putting extra effort into our planning meetings by doing them in person rather than on Zoom, and we thought about how we could spruce up the discussion meetings. Since then, we’ve introduced musical performances and other elements to make our meetings more warm and inviting.
WT: When you look back, where did you learn this spirit to foster young people?
Tanushree: Through reading Sensei’s guidance. I’m very strong-headed and quick to form opinions about others. But Sensei never judges. He meets the person where they’re at and encourages them. I now ask myself, how would Sensei encourage them?
I also chant a lot for every young woman, nonbinary member and guest. I have all of their names written in a little book that I go through every day. I think about their challenges and how I can empower them to transform their situation using faith.
While there have been many times I’ve felt deadlocked, I go back to this one quote from Sensei’s poem to American youth: “Faith is—to fear nothing / to stand unswayed / the power to surmount any obstacle. / Faith is the source from which all solutions flow” (The Sun of Youth, p. 72). Whenever I try to strategize about how to make things work, I remind myself to rely on faith and trust my prayer. All solutions to my problems flow from my determination and prayer.
WT: What is your dream for the members of Northwest Mountain Region?
Tanushree: For each chapter to become a region. The more life experiences we gain and the more we can encourage and lift one another up, the more we can transform our lives and land!
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