FOUNDERS SAY THANKS

[created by Bob Bonn - 1997 from our yearbooks] 

In the late 1980's, after having raised 4 children and nearing retirement and with time now available to do other things, Iva and I became very interested in locating our 1948 YOHI classmates, and other alumni who attended YOHI during the period the High School was located on the "Bluff" -- 1947-1952.  As alumni were found it soon became clear there was a need for the creation of an alumni organization for the purpose of conducting reunions, providing newsletters, etc.  Others got caught up in the crusade as well, and in short order an organization had been created to accommodate those alumni, which became known as the "Bluff" Group.  

Having good luck in locating alumni we expanded our search effort to find alumni who attended YOHI through the 1950's.  During the searches we discovered the existence of other very small alumni entities around the country who from time to time were participating in "All Japan" or "All YOHI" reunions that had evolved since the 1960's -- long before the creation of the "Bluff Group".  Those reunions were primarily on the West Coast.  Some of those alumni, 200-250 were "listed" at that time by a real pioneer in the development of the Yohi World -- Edward Weise, Class 1963, who early saw the need to develop a basis for communication with alumni, thus was maintaining a "list".  As did William "Pinky" Hart, Class 1958, who was formulating an association which later became known as the "Beach" Group.  It included 100-200 alumni from the late 50's and early 60's.  

Those original alumni then represented classes from the 50's through the 70's, had not organized into any formal type association as had done the "Bluff" Group -- probably because they represented so many different era's in the evolution of YOHI and were small in number; and of course they all were busy doing the things people that age do,  earning a living, raising a family, take care of parents .......   Experience told us that if they did not formalize further into a cohesive unit soon -- and each entity become known to the other --  they would eventually become lost again.

In the early conversations with Ed, "Pinky" and other younger alumni we were surprised to discover that YOHI had been renamed and relocated several times over the years, and that it still existed in Yokouska.   What an extremely interesting story that was.  A story that simply needed to be assembled and made available to the alumni at large.  Iva and I, for example, had no knowledge as to what happened to our YOHI after we graduated in 1948, and this was the case for thousands of alumni who followed.  Almost no one had the time to devote to investigation and search to discover classmates or our school's history.     

As more alumni were found, which expanded the base of knowledge about alumni and the school, it was  obvious there was a need to assemble all this information and display and share it in one place.   A place was needed for all alumni to just "hang-out"  together -- a "hometown" if you  will -- just like normal stateside [non-military brat] schools.   At the same time and equally important, it had to be a place that alumni could find [on their own] without to much difficulty -- like a web site.  At this time the "internet" was becoming a reality, and now  available for the first time in history a means to create a "hometown" for "Brats" from YOHI.  A web site could be created for  ALL YOHI ALUMNI, regardless of class / grade -- for kindergarten through grade 12, and the staff and faculties.

Contact with the evolving alumni groups indicated that due to other priorities, no one was available to expend the resources needed to create a YOHI WEB SITE.

Thus, Iva and I were grateful for the opportunity to do just that, create a place for alumni to visit and find classmates, to learn of the schools rich history, reflect on the good times of those good ole days and re-establish relationships with friends that would last a lifetime.  A place where you can allow your children and grandchildren to experience your great adventure in Japan and at YOHI.   

The creation of the web site and the YOHI World, as we know and understand it because it is more than just a web site, has expanded beyond our expectations, and has been a great joy to us.  It is difficult to comprehend or explain the exceptional heritage we all have that began with those of us who first attended YOHI back in 1947 -- and became the first graduating class from YOHI, graduating 11 June 1948 .  At the time we created the web site in 1996, the alumni known to have been located consisted of 3 identifiable groups ("Bluff", "Beach",  "Weise", +) and 900 alumni.  As we transfer the web site to others now we are pleased to note that there are 9 identifiable major groups [with a couple struggling to organize and emerge from the pack] and almost 6,000 alumni -- certainly a good start to find and assemble the perhaps 70,000 +/- alumni [attended any grade] who exist in the world.  Who could have imagined then that our YOHI would survive almost 55 years, and provide so much to the life of so many. 

After the establishment of the web site, two sizeable groups were discovered to exist; one under the control of Linda Hunt, Class 1981; and another managed by Ron Koike, Class 1972.  However, few knew of the existence of anyone but themselves.  Over the course of the past 6 years perhaps as many as 1,000 alumni for example have found the web site, and thus are no longer "lost".  They have rejoined their classmates here and are ecstatic in their discovery.

We are grateful to and thank all those alumni who found the time and had the opportunity to share with us their memorabilia, and 'feelings' about YOHI.  Acts in themselves that gave us great pleasure because  alumni, in a busy world, were caring and sharing [typical of the alumni spirit], and permitted us to simply take what they gave and assemble it in one place for all to see.    The YOHI web site of course started with just a handful of files, and was located on our account [Jameshjim] on AOL.  Over the years, because of limitations imposed upon us by AOL, and other ISP's, and as the site grew, it at one time was located on 6 different ISP's.  Those restrictions have now been lifted making it easier to sustain a large site on a reduced number of ISP's.  Thus, the YOHI web site today is located at 2 locations on 1 ISP [topcities] and consists of 5, 841 individual files occupying 160,000,000 bytes of storage space.  Another 1,895 "music only" files are located on a separate ISP that occupy 223,000,000 bytes, and at some point in the future will be made available for alumni use.

It is our desire, and we believe yours as well, that YOHI memorabilia be retained forever here in the YOHI World for all to see.   Everyone is proud of YOHI and it's spirit will live forever.  "Go Red Devils, beat Meguro"!!!!

To that end then there comes a time when we must make arrangements to insure that the YOHI World survives into the future as it exists today -- and hopefully expands over time as more alumni find the time to provide additional material for display. We can tell you that arrangements to transfer the web site into the hands of other younger alumni who can manage it in the years to come is now complete.

Accordingly we are extremely happy to pass the responsibility on to Steve, Jan, and Bill to keep the YOHI World alive, and expand it in the years to come.  Although our school in Yokosuka someday may cease to exist for political reasons, we are confident the new managers will take the necessary steps to insure that the spirit of our alma mater shall continue as long as alumni are alive to feel it.  To us, and we think to you as well, the word YOHI and the image of our RED DEVIL, is just as precious as seeing U.S.A. in print, or "OLD GLORY" waving in the breeze.  Each are symbols of a great spirit, strength and love that we all cherish and want to share with others.

Iva and I will continue to assist in any way we can -- you can depend on that.

Jim and Iva Hyatt
Managers emeriti
1 Nov 2001

PS:  All of our 1948 classmates have been located -- what a great experience -- the only class to do it so far.

Follows are a few documents that were published over the years that explain some of the evolution of the web site -- starting in Dec 1996 and bring you up to the point where we are as we release the management of the web site to the new crew.  Much of what we thought were good ideas turned out not to be so in subsequent months, and of course changes as necessary were made and published.  For example, as you will see, the publication of newsletters and sending them to the alumni ceased almost as soon as it started -- primarily because the alumni themselves had other interests and indicated they did not want to be bothered.  So, we just posted them to be read at the individuals convenience here on the web site.    Later, newer policies, procedures and guidelines were developed and published on special "pages" created just for certain functions as the concept grew -- many of those have now been destroyed -- having been overcome by events also.  However, many do contain data which indicates why certain decisions were made concerning policies, and are of historical value today.

These documents are displayed in reverse order -- the most current first and the oldest at the bottom.

YOHI WORLD FUTURE DECIDED (1 Jan 2001)

We announced here on 4 September 2000 our intention to re-evaluate our initial plan for the future of the Yohi World.

The evaluation and decision making process to determine the disposition of the YOHI Alumni [Web Site] World and its Alumni Manager / Coordinator, and Web Site Manager, has taken longer than anticipated. It is finished however and decisions have been made.

The evaluation considered the 4 alumni who had expressed interest in accepting one or both of the required positions; as well as the status of existing "active and organized groups" that would be required to volunteer resources to permit the Yohi World to sustain itself and advance over the years to come.

This evaluation is divided into 5 parts: Assumptions/Facts;  Conclusions, Decisions, Transition Schedule, Special Announcements table.

ASSUMPTIONS / FACTS:  

Among other factors, the evaluation considered the following items -- in random order:

That selection of replacements should be limited to those who VOLUNTEER to be considered -- 2 from the "C" Group, the Assistant POC from the "E" group, and an "E" Group member.

To sustain itself for the long term, the future Yohi Alumni Manager, and the Yohi Web Site Manager in some way must be a part of at least one "active group" in order to receive financial and administrative support. No longer can the management not be a part of an "active group" and expected to spend the huge sums of money required, nor be burdened with massive administrative involvement without some means of assistance.

It is unlikely that existing large groups, and those that evolve in the future will ever accept any management or coordination from anyone but themselves, and will never merge with other groups. Although they will permit their alumni to be listed on the web site, along with pictures, etc.; they are unlikely to participate in any effort to unify the alumni into one entity.  This is primarily because of the huge age differences and the experiences common to them during the era involved. Thus each major group has and or will develop its own agenda based upon those factors and remain unto themselves. This is not to say that there will never be reunions in which all groups, or more than one group will be invited, and some mingling of eras will be possible.

That the single position of the Yohi Alumni Manager / Coordinator (as opposed to an "Association") is all that is needed at present to steer and coordinate the "groups", the web site, and the alumni as a whole. This is not not to say that staff personnel may not be needed to perform certain duties or carry out certain special functions.

That Iva and I have about 6 month of unfinished "old" work that needs to be completed and uploaded onto the web site before any transfer takes place.

That the normal personal qualifications required of any individual being considered for positions such as these must apply, such as: computer and managerial skills, attitudes, communication / writing abilities, education, demonstrated past performance within the YOHI World, age, status of career and family.................... 

That as the web site expands by filling in missing data to document it's history, the work load to continue to advance and to maintain it's "current" status, decreases -- the big effort has taken place already. However, funds required to acquire more sites [for storage of data files that constitute the 13 (now) sites] and maintain equipment will increase - some one is going to have to pick up the responsibility and that it be taken into account now.

That the 13 existing sites files MUST be reduced to a much smaller number when the transfer begins -- to just one or two.

CONCLUSIONS:

That to create an "Association" would cause major disruption to some of the existing "groups" who have advanced already far beyond what an association could perform/provide -- and MUST NOT BE ATTEMPTED. For example one group already has a scholarship program, another is considering one. Those groups already provide the full range of services to their members -- such as newsletters, rosters, reunions, coordination with the school, have set up their own funds account, assess dues ........... The school it self has a "Boosters" club in Yokosuka. For those of us 10,000 miles away in the United States it is impossible to perform other functions normally associated with "Associations", like -- selling tickets, fund raisers, .......... Additionally, it is believed that the evolution of the existing groups struggling to advance to the organizational level of the most advanced will do it within the structure they already have and will remain separate entities unto themselves. Those new ones that follow are likely to do the same. Last to be mentioned here but not the last   considered was an awards program. A program already exists within the Web Site structure and need not be duplicated.

Although the two older groups are more advanced in development and stability to provide candidates to fill the positions and support the effort, the ages of the members are such that most are retired or soon will be and to chose from them would mean that another change in leadership at the YOHI World would be required soon, again and again...........

Those best suited to take the leadership are those who have matured and still have the energy, are fully established in their careers (but still working), have been "enlightened" by a reunion such as Las Vegas, and can keep the YOHI organization together the longest -- like those from the 60'-70's.

Although the "E" Group and it's members are still struggling to evolve into a full blown organization providing all the services other more advanced groups provide, that group and its members are the best solution for YOHI. They will organize further soon. They are younger but mature enough, are well established in their careers and family planning, and will provide the least disruption in the near term before another change is needed in perhaps 10-20 years. It just so happens there are alumni in this group who are qualified and willing to assume the tasks at hand.

DECISION:

We are extremely pleased and fortunate to have found alumni who possess the prerequisites, are WILLING to accept the responsibility and devote the time involved. They are:

YOHI MANAGER/COORDINATOR:  Pastor Stephen "Steve" M Norden, Class of 1970 - E-mail: snorden@columbus.rr.com.   Steve's Yohi  "profile". Steve has a business web site at - http://www.nhrcoh.org/.

YOHI WEBSITE MANAGER [Webmistress]: Janet Bready Sims, Class of 1970 - E-mail: Breadysmit@aol.com.   Jan's "profile". [OBE Aug 2002]

* * *

ADDENDUM

YOHI WEBSITE ASS'T MANAGER : Bill Sims, Class of 1968 - E-mail: BSims5019@aol.com.

* * *

The YOHI World is in good hands now for years to come, and alumni can look forward to continued growth and new innovations that will make it more beneficial to all!

Separate "pages" are being set up for Steve and Jan to use pending final transfer -- links to those pages can be found at the bottom of the HomePage.

TRANSITION SCHEDULE:

Effective today and on a phased basis over the course of the next year, Iva and I will transfer the YOHI World -- the duties of the Yohi Manager/Coordinator, Yohi Webmaster / Webmistress, and the Yohi Web Site to our successors.

During the transition all NEW initiatives that develop requiring management action or coordination within the YOHI World will be passed by Iva and I to Steve (and or Jan as appropriate), who will then directly coordinate with those to be involved. Thus, please don't wait to pass on suggestions or comments that would enhance the YOHI World. Let them get started on them now.

The same will be true with the webmistress and the web site, except that Iva and I have several months work on hand that we will complete, in addition to moving the existing site to it's new location.

Until notified otherwise please continue to send mail, reports, memorabilia, etc ..... to Iva and I for decision and coordination as appropriate, as you always have -- except those who are now responding directly to messages from Steve or Jan. Over time we will individually coordinate and or announce changes as required that involve transfer of functions as we slowly complete each phase of the transfer.  The Transition Schedule at the bottom will give you some idea of when an action is to take place, and the Special Announcements table will announce NEW decisions.

At the conclusion of the transition, Iva and I will advise/assist as long as we are able to continue.

As we move the 5000 files on individual pages from one location to another we will leave a "notice of movement" at the OLD URL -- with a link to the new page URL -- for a few weeks and then remove it. Some of the ISP's we use forbid such linking so we may not be able to do that in all cases, but will do our best to make it as easy for you as possible to find your way and follow the progress. However, in all cases, when we move a page to it's new location, it will be linked at that time from the Table of Contents - thus if you will go to the Table of Contents you will always be able to find what you are looking for. Then you can re-bookmark the new page for your convenience.

One of the last pages to be moved will be this one - thus you may want to bookmark it. We will use the Special Announcements table at the bottom to make spot announcements as to the progress of the transition and any special instructions that are needed.

For "background" leading to this decision, see "BACKGROUND" following the table below.

Jim and Iva Hyatt
1 Jan 2001

TRANSITION SCHEDULE

BACKGROUND

LEADING TO "TRANSFER DECISION"

EVOLUTION OF THE YOHI WORLD

Created 3 December 1996 by Jim and Iva (Hurst) Hyatt -- both class of 1948 -- as a free and permanent service to all alumni of the YOHI (Yokohama American / Nile C Kinnick) high school system, including all secondary schools connected to that system, and St Joseph College.

WHAT IS THE FUTURE FOR THE YOHI WORLD
(4 Sep 2000)

It has been our desire from the beginning of this YOHI Web Site in 1996 that the "YOHI World" be a permanent fixture so as to record the wonderful history of our school for all alumni and their families, but especially for the generations of the alumni to follow. And so it shall.

From the very beginning we have always had a plan to transfer the site to persons on a very "short list" of potential replacements in case of a crisis -- meaning something would happen without warning and Iva and I would be unable to continue to manage the site.

Although that plan is "workable", it is NOT the best solution as a crisis has already occurred and great turmoil would exist. It would be extremely difficult for anyone to pick up the pieces and carry on in a orderly way without a great deal of confusion, inefficiency and "mashing of teeth"; and the man-hours required would have severe effects on that persons job, family, etc. For example, each of our current sites -- which collectively include over 4,000 files on many ISP's are woven together in very complex maze and would have to be immediately completely destroyed and rebuilt someplace else under the management of someone else.  An awesome task in itself, let alone all the things that go on behind the scenes like "book keeping", records and file management, list maintenance / update, processing 5,000 e-mail transactions per year, etc........ The backup data -- another "headache", amounts to almost 8000 files, consuming over 500,000,000 bytes of storage on floppy disks. There are 14,000 e-mail messages in the file cabinet which have to be retained for reference.

What is needed is a plan to effect the transfer of the YOHI World in an orderly and phased way -- before a crisis occurs -- so that when the time comes the sites already are under the control of those who will continue.

It has taken all of us 4 years to build the YOHI World as it exists today. No one has that time anymore to spend on such a project, and it is certainly not needed -- when a transfer can be effected otherwise in a much shorter time.

During those 4 years the duties as manager of the YOHI Web Site have changed....... from just Webmaster of the YOHI sites, to include duties of defacto coordinator of the YOHI World -- a function not anticipated to become a reality so soon. Things have happened much quicker than expected. Thus, there are now 2 positions that must be considered for transfer.

Additionally, there recently has been some discussion about maybe creating an Alumni Association which would steer the YOHI World in a direction beneficial to everyone.

Iva and I, with your help, since the YOHI World is composed of all alumni -- especially those who have contributed to it's advancement; would like to make a decision in a month or two as to whom shall receive the entire responsibility -- a person or persons, or "group", or ?????. Then begin the orderly transfer of all things necessary over the following year or two.

There are many factors involved in the decision process, including such things as: availability of resources of individuals, levels of organization within "groups" to support the effort should a "group" oriented decision be made, suitability of replacements to insure continuity and longevity .......................

If you have any suggestions, comments or desires, please let us have them.

Jim and Iva Hyatt
4 September 2000

JULY 1998 NEWSLETTER

YO, Hi

This and all future "Newsletters" will be published on the HomePage - as opposed to E-Mailing them to alumni - as announced in the Feb letter.

Newsletters will be brief, and only as needed.

MEMBER NUMBERS:  Since Feb 98, alumni identified on the site has increased from 2,300 to 2,600.  E-Mail list has grown from 600 to 1000 (with 50 more being processed).  Many of these additions are a result of Alumni contacting Alumni and having them contact us.    We thank you for doing that.  Keep spreading the word please!

HISTORY COMMITTEE:   We are pleased to announce the addition of two more members to the staff - a History Committee - with Bob Bonn - Class 1965, and Pat Collins - Class 1964.  Their mission is to acquire from alumni, and other sources, as much history of the school as possible, document and publish it.  It is a major project, and requires the cooperation of everyone.

WEB SITE CONSOLIDATION:  James Yoneda graduated from NCK this year and returned to the CONUS.  He for years managed that e-mail address site from Yokosuka that many of you have visited for addresses of the younger alumni.  In June he informed me he would no longer maintain that site (no further entries have/will be made to it), and asked me to consolidate it with this one, all before it is removed.  That consolidation has taken place.  We thank him for his significant contribution to enhance the YOHI World, and for his personal assistance to me.

WEB SITE SPACE:  We are attempting (as promised) to maintain this web site on a "FREE" basis, and at the same time to keep it as inexpensive as possible.  Again, I mention that space on our ISP (the place where it is stored on the internet) is rapidly being consumed, and is now hampering the expansion of the site.  It has reached a level far in excess of what was envisioned, and it's potential growth, now based upon known expansions in mind, is unlimited - with additional space to store the data.  Please, if anyone is interested in permitting us to use some of your space on the internet (AOL users preferred, but any space on any ISP can be used) please let us know.  Some minimal work is involved on your part if you elect to do this, as you must receive files from me and then "UPLOAD" them into your space on the internet.  I would send you permanent files - files that need only be uploaded once or twice a year, to minimize the work on your part.  If we are unable to obtain additional volunteer space, and after removal of some non-essential items from the site to see what we can do, then we may consider accepting help in "funding" for an additional "account" to double what we now have.  A second 10,000,000 byte space is more than can conceivably be used under all expansion concepts - we think.

NEW ADDITIONS:  Changes are made to the web site daily.  Some are significant and we would like to call your attention to them:

QUESTIONS PAGE:

A list of questions needing answers.  Accessible from the Table of Contents page.

HISTORY PAGE UPDATE:

Significant new data has been added.

GRAPHICS:

Major new graphics added to HomePage, History Page and linked from the History Page - More coming.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS SECTION:

In middle of HomePage (page 1).  Visit often as announcements change frequently.

"A HERO PERISHED":

A book about Nile Clarke Kinnick - see "BOOKS' in Table of Contents.

AOL WILL NOT ANSWER:  In the Message Board is a copy of a letter we sent to the President of AOL concerning an AOL member who identifies himself as Nile Clarke Kinnick of Adel Iowa.   We have not received an answer, and do not expect one.  We believe the person who identifies himself as such is perpetuating a cruel hoax.  Additionally, relatives of Nile who live in Adel, confirm there is NO one there matching that person.

Sayonara for now,

jameshjim@aol.com Jim and Iva HYATT - July 1998

FEBRUARY 1998 NEWSLETTER

YO, Hi

Since not all YOHI'ers can visit the YOHI WEB SITE on a frequent basis to maintain a "current status", this message is the first in a series being sent to the 600+ "on-line" YOHI'ers advising of new or updated information.

Messages will be brief, and may only be as frequent as quarterly.

MEMBER NUMBERS: Since our Nov/Dec 1997 Annual Report we have increased from 2,100 to 2,300. E-Mail list has gone from 460 to 600 (with 30-40 more being processed in). There is someone listed that you know. Several NEW YOHI'ers are finding the site per week.

REUNIONS: Reunion page now managed by Charlotte (Ryser) Carey, 1959 '56-'58 [voyager@pcm.net]. Three great reunions now scheduled for 1998 - another in the planning stages.

PROFILES: NEW, manager Margaret (Johnson) Wiley 1981 '76-'79 [wileym@hbblaw.com]. The profiles page will feature "biographies" of YOHI'ers. Generally speaking, it will be a brief summary of what the person profiled has done since his YOHI days and what they are doing now. For example, the profile may include such information as: college attended, degree/year, occupation, marital status, spouse's occupation, number/ages of children, etc. along with a fond memory or two from his YOHI years. We would also like to include a "then" and "now" picture, if possible. Estimate activation Apr-May 98. Please volunteer your "bio" for display on the YOHI Web Site. It's fun and interesting for everyone. For those of you who volunteer, the YOHI "Find-UM" service will assist you in finding one lost YOHI'er.

CHAT: NEW, you are manager. Click here to visit chat page. MEMORIES PAGE: Perhaps. Al Morel 1972 '66-'69, among others has suggested a page be created where YOHI'ers submit their memories from Japan (favorite teachers, experiences, pranks, etc), and or carry on "message traffic" with other members. Although we have a message page, it has limitations and is seldom used - perhaps that's why. What would you like to have? Along this line, should I make the (NEW) Guestbook entries public?

HISTORY: In recent months much history about YOHI has been obtained - along with pictures. It, of course, is not new to those who witnessed it - but most didn't. I urge you to revisit our history page and landmark page; and read a letter (now copied by and added to other Japan School web sites) that was originally sent to the YOHI Web Site by Mr. Kenta Tanimichi. He is a very interesting, talented and a helpful author living in Tokyo. He would like to hear from anyone who would like to participate by furnishing data for books he is writing about Americans who went to school in Japan. His letter/s can be read in our message page - and include his addresses.

HISTORIAN: Maybe! We don't have one. Do we need one? How much "history" is to much? Should all of it be acquired and published for EVERYONE to see? Many are asking about history? I believe it is worthwhile to determine what we can while we can, make it public - else it will be lost forever. Although sources are limited, more information can be acquired. It takes time and effort. Who wants to help explore this subject?

JOIN / CREATE A GROUP: YOHI'ers on the LISTLESS (GROUP) LIST are urged to join a "recognized group" that provides periodic "activities" (newsletters, reunions, member rosters, etc). Although you are just fine where you are and the location data you provided us - if you did - is safe and secure, and you won't get lost again - however we provide no "activities" associated with that group - except what is provided on the web site. There are groups that provide a number of enjoyable and beneficial "activities" on a frequent basis. We suggest you look at what is available and seek membership in a group that does provide more "activities". You cannot join the "BLUFF" Group unless you attended YOHI on the Bluff. The "BEACH" Group - NOW the (YOKOHAMA AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL FORMER STUDENTS ASSO (YO-HI FSA) - has indicated they are extending their membership eligibility to include the entire time the school was located at the "Beach" in Yokohama - Aug 1952 until it moved to Yokosuka in 1971. This creates a natural separation of groups. Perhaps some consolidation of YOHI'ers for those who attended at Yokosuka will eventually result. This could result in just 3 Groups - "Bluff" Yokohama, "Beach" Yokohama, and Yokosuka. We now identify ten. If you do not desire to join an existing group, then consider getting all your classmates together and create a new group that provides "activities" - we can help. There are a number of options. If you are happy, you are perfectly welcome to stay just where you are. It would be nice if we all became one group. Only 29 percent of this group has provided a 'off-line' location - some of which is incomplete and some suspected as now being invalid. E-Mail address are being determined daily as invalid - not by typos but folks have moved or no longer are 'on-line'.

CREATE/LINK YOUR OWN SITE WITHIN THE YOHI SITE: If your group (or a CLASS) wants to create a page within the YOHI Web Site we have some space right here - the Class of 1992 just added one. Perhaps you have or will create a site elsewhere, like a personal homepage and would like to let us link to it, let us know - we already have 10 on the links page. Let your classmates see what you have created.

SPREAD THE WORD: Due to communications problems, funding, and other reasons, a significant number of YOHI'ers are not yet aware of the YOHI WORLD here. Some groups publish Newsletters that get the word to their 'off-line' members. You can help. Mention this site in your Xmas cards, or send special letters. Suggest classmates visit the site using a friend's or relative's computer, or even go to a local library that has one, or to a "cyber-cafe" and rent an 'on-line' experience. Encourage them to update their US POSTAL address with the POC for their group, and update our records as well. Tell them about the reunions - some would attend if they knew! We just can't reach everyone.

BELLS AND WHISTLES: The web site does not use impressive features like frames or backgrounds because many members don't have the equipment / software to handle them - they drastically slow down rendering, and require massive amounts of space on a SINGLE ISP ACCOUNT. We have 10 meg for the entire site and have used / obligated 8.5 so eventually we will run out of space as it is, unless someone loans us space.

2300 NAME LIST: We temporarily have available a single .htm file at the web site listing all 2300 YOHI'ers - still broken down into 10 lists, but it's easier to view than finding all 10 separately. We don't include it as a part of the YOHI pages because many cannot load it due to it's huge size. You can view it at allyohi.htm and can do a lot with it if you have a powerful word processor.

MESSAGE "SUBJECTS": Please use the word YOHI somewhere in the subject of messages. I get as many at 150 messages per day (5 screen-names) and unless I recognize the e-mail address or "Subject" - almost all are deleted without reading.

This site belongs to each of you, what is it you want, LET'S MAKE IT HAPPEN.

Sayonara for now,

Jim and Iva HYATT - February 1998  

1997 ANNUAL REPORT

Greetings YOHI'er:

The purpose of this ANNUAL message is three fold: 1) verify your E-Mail address, 2) advise you of major changes in the YOHI Web Site, and plans for it's future; and, 3) wish each of you happy holidays, by offering you a view of 1947 Yokohama [a special picture was included for downloading]

We need to purge our E-Mail list of invalid addresses. By sending this message to ALL 460+ addresses we can partially validate the list, since the "Internet mail delivery system" will notify us by special "returned" mail that it cannot deliver a message to any address which is NO LONGER REGISTERED on your Internet Service Provider/s (ISP/s). Some persons subscribe to an ISP only for short periods of time, then cancel and sign-off without telling us, thus those addresses are no longer valid. Some persons change screen names (addresses) or ISP's and fail to inform us. Some persons use a "friends", "office" or "cybercafe" account (ISP) to access the net, use a "convenient" screen name to make contact but then drop out of sight and we are again left without a valid address. Most ISP's for unexplained reasons periodically experience days/hours when they temporarily "drop" your account from their registry and no one can reach you. Additionally, we may have (probably did) - yep, I'm sure we made a few "typo's" on our address list, so some messages will be delivered to the wrong person/address (and we won't know it), and any "returned" message considered as an invalid address when in fact you are still there but we don't know it because we don't know we have made a mistake on your address. Wow - how can we fix that!!!! Hopefully, during the year everyone will have discovered our mistake on our E-Mail List and asked for it to be corrected. Here are some interesting pertinent statistics: YOHI E-Mail Address = 460+, Guest book entries = 175, Visits to the YOHI Web Site = 2020+ (many repeat visits). So far over we have been unable to deliver mail to over 70 e-mail addresses.

After receipt of this message we ask that you, when time permits, send us a brief and simple acknowledgment verifying your address on the E-MAIL LIST - AND; if the data on that list does NOT include your complete name (including Maiden), your YOHI CLASS (19??), and the years ('?? - '??) you attended YOHI, please include that info. It is very very important for that data to be displayed correctly and completely on ALL LISTS in which you appear. Additionally, if you are on the LISTLESS LIST, (meaning you are not a member of a "recognized" group with a POC) you may also include your Address, City, State, ZIP, and Phone Number for safekeeping and recording in the our overall YOHI DATABASE. The chances of persons on "recognized" lists getting lost again is next to impossible when the complete location data is kept "current". Remember I will NOT make public on our Web Site Lists (POC LIST EXCEPTED), your street address or phone number - that stays private. Think of it this way, if you are NO LONGER "on-line", or you can't be reached by E-Mail for any number of reasons, then how will anyone attempting to coordinate a YOHI Activity get in touch with you.

This message is being dispatched automatically in small alphabetical "batches" from our E-Mail List each day over the next 30-45 days, without regard to date of receipt of messages from you. Thus, if we have recently heard from you, have your complete data, and now send you this message we apologize for the inconvenience. Additionally, if you have more than one e-mail address you will receive a letter for each one. I regret again the inconvenience but there is no other way to validate our lists.

MAJOR CHANGES DURING PAST YEAR:

*YOHI Membership Groups (Organizations) "Publicly" identified have grown from 3 to 10. It appears that the '53-'60 (62) "BEACH" Group is going to expand to include ALL the years that the High School was located on the BEACH in Yokohama - 1953-1971. If that occurs, and if consolidation of members takes place over time, then YOHI will be divided into it's 3 natural geographical locations - "Bluff", "Beach", "Yokosuka".

*YOHI'ers identified and made public have grown from 900 to 2100+.

*At least 72 "lost" YOHI'ers have found this Web Site - now have a home. Additionally 326 have been identified who are not now known to be included in a "recognized - organized" YOHI Group, with a POC, etc.

*With help from many, the Web Site expanded from 10 pages and 21 graphic/photos to 72 and 204 respectfully.

FUTURE:

The YOHI Web Site will remain active - HERE - and continue to be a place for ALL YOHI'ers to "hang-out", a single source for information about YOHI's history, alumni member lists and organizations, reunions, etc. We will endeavor to expand it more; however, that will depend mostly upon input from you - we need historical or interesting facts about the school, it's faculty and students, and pictures of all types. Hopefully, we will get a lot of neat stuff to upload. We still have considerable room to expand - however technically we can expand to virtually unlimited size - if certain conditions were met - I'll explain.

The YOHI Web Site on AOL (our ISP of choice) LIMITS us to 2,000,000 bytes of space per "screen name" per "account" for creation of web sites (normal for most ISP's). We have one account with 5 screen names - you only know of one, Jameshjim; but we also have 4 others that we do not use for anything except storage of data. That means we can store up to 10,000,000 bytes on our single account with AOL in Virginia - the Web Site does not come directly off our computer - it comes from AOL's Computer System in Virginia - we just "rent" space there and send (upload) all Web Site files to that system for you to view. As of now we have 3,500,000 bytes of unused space remaining in our account - a lot, and we can internally regain a couple hundred by re-compressing certain files. I do not desire to purchase a second account however, so if we need space above the 10,000,000 LIMIT (and it's possible), then one or two of you will have to offer us space in your ISP "account" for use to store files. I would then "link" what is appropriate from one location to the other. No one would know the difference as the "linking" is silent and fast. If you are willing to do this, please let us know about it NOW, so we can get together and work out the details for use when needed.

We get a lot of mail here at the Web Site - record 37 in one day. Much of it is "junk" mail. You can help us (and others) distinguish mail we want to read (yours) and the mail we don't want to read (junk), by being a little creative and always use a "YOHI" (or similar word/phrase) in the "Subject:" of your message. Subjects like "Hi", "You need to read this", or "Another voice heard from.....", are likely to get DELETED rather than read.

We appreciate your participation in the YOHI Web Site, and wish you a Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year ("SHINEN AKEMASHITE OMEDETO. YOI OTOSHI OH.")

Jim and Iva HYATT - Dec 1997

YOHI MESSAGE BOARD
9 Sep 97

PUT YOUR MESSAGE RIGHT HERE!!!!!!!!!!!! GUIDELINES

NR 1

Use of this message board is offered to ALL YOHI'ers; however, it will be restricted to subject matter of GENERAL INTEREST TO ALL YOHI VISITORS.

NR 2

The following type requests WILL NOT be inserted: 1) advertisement for personal or commercial products or services; 2) promotion of any "cause" (other than YOHI); or, 3) "looking for" (friend / classmate), or "want to hear from" type messages.

CREATE YOUR GROUP'S MINI-PAGE RIGHT HERE

YOUR CHANCE TO DOCUMENT THE HISTORY OF YOUR GROUP

This page in this YOHI WEB SITE will be made available to the "POC", "Custodian" and or other "spokes person" of each recognized YOHI Group for their exclusive use - to create and personalize that groups history, current events, present and future plans and objectives, etc., - most anything you want to say.

This will be YOUR GROUP'S PAGE - you design it to suit your needs and desires. It's all free, you must do the work however (I'll help with the HTML coding if needed and provide other assistance) but the "creation" is yours.

Certain "conditions" however must be imposed, such as the size of your page, its contents, etc. For example, my entire Web Site is limited to 10 meg of hard disk space on the ISP (Internet Service Provider) - AOL. Depending on how many of these special pages are needed, I can not allocate more than about 1 meg to ALL OF THEM (lets say 10 individual group and sub-group pages). Sooooo, perhaps you may only be able to receive a maximum of 100,000 kb of space - which is many many volumes of just text - more than you will probably want to write. Graphics, pictures and special effects (the fancy "bells and whistles" - that don't mean much - and causes "slow" computers to bog down) are what takes up the space. Here are some examples of what you can create with 100,000 kb - with just text (no graphics): this page takes 2,750 kb of space; the entire 400 name E-MAIL list requires only 24,203 kb; and the BIG LANDMARK PAGE with all the "tables" (which requires more space than just text) uses only 18,374 kb - so, you can do a lot with 100,000 kb - even a few small pic's. To show you the difference, some individual pictures on the Web Site require more than 85,000 kb.

Persons interested in accepting this responsibility for "YOUR GROUP (or sub-group) should contact Jim Hyatt and make your desires known. At that time we can discuss and work out the "details".

Updated 17 August 1997