Walnut Grove
Walnut Grove, California
We chose to have our wedding at the Walnut Grove Buddhist Church and Gakuen Hall, where Gregory’s great uncle Toshio Sakai was a longtime member and caretaker. “Uncle Tosh” was born in Walnut Grove in 1913, where a Japantown grew and flourished in the early 20th century. Both the Church and Gakuen were built in 1927. The church was originally opened as a branch of the Buddhist Church of Sacramento to serve the growing number of Buddhists in the farming hub of “Kawashima” (an endonym for Walnut Grove). The Gakuen Hall (on the National Register of Historic Places) was built by the local Japanese American community in 1927 to be a culture and language school, in reaction to California’s 1921 public school segregation laws.
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Under the WWII-era Executive Order 9066, Japanese Americans on the West Coast were removed from their communities and incarcerated in military-run camps in the nation’s interior. Both Issei (first generation), who were barred from citizenship by anti-immigration legislation, and their Nisei (second-generation) children, who were United States citizens by birth, were incarcerated on the basis of race. After the war, many families returned, but ultimately did not stay in Walnut Grove. With our wedding, we wanted to share this bit of personal history, support the temple, and celebrate the hard-work and persistence of immigrant communities. Living in neighboring Sacramento, we felt that Walnut Grove would be a perfect place for a wedding where we could play taiko and celebrate a joyful evening in the lush countryside that has sustained generations.
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Our favorite spots around Walnut Grove and Sacramento!
Cosumnes River Preserve
- Nature walk & bird watching -
Osaka-Ya
- Mochi & Shave Ice -
California Museum
- Check out the Uprooted Exhibit -
Oto's Marketplace
- Japanese Grocery Store -
Village of OM Plant Kitchen
- Vegan dining - Highly recommend their sushi rolls!
Queen Sheba Ethiopian Cuisine
- Ethiopian Food -