Foreign Minister's Commendation Conferment Ceremony for Prof. Yasuko Lehtinen

 On October 28th (Friday), the Foreign Minister's Commendation Conferment Ceremony was held for Professor Yasuko Lehtinen at Kenai Peninsula College.  At the ceremony were Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Mike Navarre, Kenai Peninsula College Director Cheryl Siemers, Language Department Chair Christina Stuive, and Mrs. Lehtinen's family, friends, students, college officials, Soldotna city officials, and from the Consular Office of Japan in Anchorage, Mr. Aniya and Mr. Howard.

At the ceremony, Mr. Aniya delivered a congratulatory speech praising Lehtinen's achievements in Japanese language education and sister city exchanges, and then presented a certificate of the Foreign Minister's Commendation to her.  Dr. Lehtinen shared her memories of when she first arrived at Kenai Peninsula College, and how honored she was to receive the award.  Director Siemers expressed her gratitude for having Dr. Lehtinen as a colleague, and thanked her for being a leader and mentor to the students.  Dr. Stuive mentioned that Dr. Lehtinen is always available for consultations with the students, and that she is a very passionate educator. Also, Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Mike Navarre praised her achievements in sister city exchanges by introducing humorous anecdotes related to heartwarming exchanges with citizens of Akita City during his visit, and the impressive scenes of the Akita Kanto Festival.

Furthermore, a congratulatory message from Akita City Mayor Motomu Hozumi was read out, and Mayor Navarre read a proclamation announcing October 28, 2022, as Yasuko Lehtinen Appreciation Day in the Kenai Peninsula Borough.

 Read Peninsula Clarion's article on the event here