CategoryProfiles

With the SGI-USA’s focus on developing the chapter as the headquarters for the community they encompass, the World Tribune sat down with Katty Grant, a chapter women’s leader, to hear about how Roosevelt Chapter is fostering youth. World Tribune: Thank you for meeting with us Katty, representing Roosevelt Chapter in Queens, New York. We heard

by Lani ArsenaultBoone, N.C. After my husband retired, we left Virginia in 2019 for the quieter, slower life in Boone, North Carolina—a beautiful town in the mountains. By this point, I’d been practicing Nichiren Buddhism for over 25 years, having overcome lupus, cancer and financial difficulties—all while striving in SGI activities. Honestly, I felt I

This year, SGI-USA youth will hold chapter-level March Youth Peace Festivals with the determination to create peace in their local communities. The World Tribune is featuring chapter youth leaders and how they are applying Ikeda Sensei’s guidance to win where they are. Ikeda Sensei’s Guidance:  No matter what the circumstances, the person with firm resolve

This year, SGI-USA youth will hold chapter-level March Youth Peace Festivals with the determination to create peace in their local communities. The World Tribune is featuring chapter youth leaders and how they are applying Ikeda Sensei’s guidance to win where they are. Ikeda Sensei’s Guidance:  Prayer is the courage to persevere. It is the struggle

This year, SGI-USA youth will hold chapter-level March Youth Peace Festivals with the determination to advance kosen-rufu in their local communities. The World Tribune is featuring chapter youth leaders and how they are applying Ikeda Sensei’s guidance to win where they are. Ikeda Sensei’s Guidance:  What’s important … is that you resolve to become the

by Saori HisayamaCullman, Ala.  I was a young women’s division member in Tokyo when my sister, who lives in Colorado, introduced me to a man she met there. We got married, and I moved to the U.S. in 2010. Originally, we stayed in Colorado, but soon after my husband got a new job and we

The World Tribune interviewed men’s division member Michael Petkov, of Saugerties, New York, about his experiences as a youth supporting behind the scenes as a member of the Soka Group. The Soka Group supports Soka Gakkai event planning and operations based on the spirit to protect the members.   World Tribune: Thank you, Michael, for

The World Tribune interviewed women’s division member Susan Moromisato, of Garfield, New Jersey, about her experiences as a youth supporting behind the scenes. Susan graduated from the Byakuren Group, a young women’s division training group that supports various activities with the spirit to protect and serve the members on behalf of Ikeda Sensei.  World Tribune:

Introducing another person to Nichiren Buddhism is the highest form of humanity because it enables them to awaken their highest innate potential and change their destiny. We all have vastly different experiences of being introduced to Buddhism. The World Tribune spoke with SGI-USA members who have quite memorable stories about how they began their Buddhist

The World Tribune interviewed men’s division member Dave Welch, of Aliso Viejo, California, about his experiences as a youth supporting behind the scenes. Dave was a member of the Gajokai, a young men’s division training group that oversees the security and operations of Soka Gakkai facilities. World Tribune: Thank you, Dave, for sharing your story

by Anna Lane Belmont, Mass.  At a point in my life when I was struggling with self-confidence and being comfortable in my own skin, my young women’s leader encouraged me to join the Byakuren Group. I was inspired by her life and wanted to become joyful like many of the other young women I saw

by Alina Marrero San Juan, Puerto Rico “We have no active youth!” That’s how Ruta 66 Chapter felt for years. Members always made causes, and our meetings have always been joyful. But with the pandemic, something needed to change. I’m a journalist, playwright and theater critic. In the arts, a time of crisis can be

Living Buddhism sat down with youth division members to talk about what taking part in the May Commemorative Contribution activity means to them. Contributing Out of Appreciation Miho HommaLong Island City, New York In 2011, I worked for a company that paid low wages and had never given a bonus to employees. This was my

Commemorating 770 years since Nichiren declared his teaching for the happiness of all humanity.

by Dinesh Sajnani Plano, Texas A member back in India told me a story I could never forget. They were visiting a Soka Gakkai center in Japan when another member’s shoe broke as they walked. Noticing them struggling, a young man staffing the center—a Gajokai—rushed over and handed them a spare shoe in exactly the

On raising capable young people.

by Amelia Gonzalez SGI-USA Young Women’s Leader From the beginning of my practice, I was encouraged to share Buddhism with others if I wanted to change my life and become happy. I was facing expulsion from high school, and there wasn’t a day when I was sober. A school counselor was assigned to me because

by Lio Spinelli and Willie Noto New York Lio Spinelli: It was a serendipitous moment returning to New York last year. I was born in New Jersey and spent my first few years in Brooklyn before moving to England. In 2006, when I was 4, my mother and I were in a motor accident that

Representatives from the Byakuren and Soka Group share how supporting an SGI-USA activity behind the scenes enabled them to break through their personal challenges. Both supported “EMERGE,” a Southern California youth meeting commemorating the 30th anniversary of Ikeda Sensei’s poem “Sun of Jiyu Over a New Land,” held on Jan. 29, 2023, at the SGI-USA

Reflections From Vietnam Veterans