Kaz Shikaze

Kaz Shikaze was born in Mission, B.C., in January 1938. During the Second World War, his family were forcibly relocated to a farm in Morris, Man. Later the family settled in 1946 on a farm near Leamington, Ont.

Kaz went to the University of Toronto and graduated with a degree in civil engineering and later an MBA. For most of his career, he worked in sales and marketing for the Ford Motor Co. He and his wife, Ruby, have been married for 60 years and have two grown children.

Because of the oppression and discrimination, he and 22,000 other Japanese Canadians suffered from 1942-1949, he became very interested in social justice and related community outreach.

In 1995 Kaz joined the Pueblito Canada board, a non-governmental organization that works on children’s issues in the Caribbean, Central and South America.

Kaz has been a member of Toronto Japanese United Church, now called Bayview United Church, since 1964. He has been Sunday school superintendent, finance and board chair, and a member of various committees including the outreach committee. The church has a history of supporting many Japanese Canadian organizations.

Kaz volunteers at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre and Momiji Health Care Society. He has been on the board of the Momiji Foundation since its inception in 1995 and has served as treasurer and president.

He is concerned about the oppression and injustice suffered by Indigenous people and has voiced his support in speeches and many letters-to-the editor.