The early hours of Saturday, November 4, began like a lot of other typical fall days. Lots of rain and wind, with a little thunder and lightning thrown in. A good day to stay indoors, tackle a few projects, and perhaps watch a little football on television. Instead, several brave souls ignored the weather and anxiously ventured out to a Lotus Skyliners book signing at the Nisei Veterans Hall. For those who may not have been around in the 1950s and 1960s, the Lotus Skyliners were a popular swing band that performed in and around the Seattle area and up and down the West Coast.

When they entered the Hall, attendees were warmly greeted by enthusiastic NVC Foundation hosts and organizers Shawn Brinsfield and Geri Lynne Nakao-Egeler. Dale Kaku was on hand to moderate the panel discussion and Shiz Kaku organized the refreshment table. In addition, members of the Lotus Skyliners Book Committee — Janet Baba, Kai Kubota (son of former Skyliner Tom Kubota), and Jean Nishi — helped where needed.

All attendees were in for a special treat. In addition to purchasing books and having them signed by authors Randy Tada, Kay Hirai, and former Skyliners band members, the Kaiden Uyeda Quartet played swing music throughout the afternoon, including songs like “Misty,” “The Way You Look Tonight,” “Autumn Leaves,” and, of course, “Unforgettable,” the signature song for the event. By the way, Kaiden is the grandson of Paul Uyeda, who also played tenor sax for the Skyliners. It just goes to show that the genes don’t fall far from the tree.

Midway through the quartet’s performance, the band was joined by Mark Kihara (nephew of Vic Kihara), a professional dancer. Everyone stopped what they were doing to observe the fine art of swing dancing and enthusiastically applauded after his demonstration.

One of the most thought-provoking parts of the afternoon was when Dale led a panel discussion with former Skyliners Gary Yamashita (who flew in from the Bay Area with his wife Judy), Frank Fukui, Vic Kihara, Ken Aoki, and former “groupies” Janet Baba, Kay Hirai, and Ken Wakazuru. All the personal band and military stories that were told by the panelists were of extreme interest to those in attendance, especially the younger generation.

When the event concluded, the weather had noticeably improved, and everyone left with satisfied smiles on their faces, knowing their purchases had contributed over $1,000 to the NVC Foundation Scholarship Fund. With signed books in hand, you could see a noticeable “swing” in their steps as they left the Hall and headed out to enjoy the sunshine.  

In closing, I would be remiss if I didn’t gratefully acknowledge the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and 4Culture organizations. Their generous grants provided partial funding for the publication of the Lotus Skyliners book and this event.