| Day/Date/Time |
Event |
Thursday
January 1 |
YTHS membership Dues for 2026 due. Note that membership rates have increased from 2025. Membership form and more details can be found here. |
Saturday
January 10
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
“The Tokutomi Memorial Contest Unveiling: 2026 Kigo Words, Pointers, and Tips,” by Kathabela Wilson, contest chair. Rick Wilson will provide music. The contest kido and other details can be found here. Last year’s Contest winning haiku and details can be found here. |
Thursday
January 15 |
Submissions deadline (YTHS members only) for the first 2026 Geppo. Guidelines for YTHS members only to submit to Geppo can be found here. |
Saturday
February 14
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
Haiku workshop “A Simple Way to Teach Haiku to Newbies,” presented by Roger Abe, , YTHS dōjin. |
Sunday
March 1 |
Registration opens for the Annual YTHS 4-day Retreat at Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove CA. See details under the September entry below. |
Saturday
March 7
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
Haiku poet and artist Annette Makino will describe her recent hiking tour in Tohoku, Japan, where she followed part of Matsuo Bashō’s 1689 route that led to his classic haiku-laced travelogue, Narrow Road to the Deep North. |
Wednesday
April 1 |
Submissions deadline (YTHS members only) for the 2026 YTHS Members’ Anthology. Guidelines for YTHS members only to submit to the 2025 Anthology can be found here. |
Saturday
April 11
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
Featured speaker Susan Antolin. Further details will be available here as they become known. |
Wednesday
April 15 |
Submissions deadline (YTHS members only) for the second 2026 Geppo. Guidelines for YTHS members only to submit to Geppo can be found here. |
Saturday
May 9
4:30 PM–7 PM
In Person and Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
Mark your calendar for this year’s Spring Reading: “Haiku at Home,” organized by Carol Steele and Kae Bendixen
A hybrid in person and Zoom event at Works / San José community art and performance center
38 South Second Street
San José, California 95113
Doors open at 4:30 pm.
Program 5:00-7:00 pm with one intermission.
Light snacks and beverages with be served.
Parking: 90 minutes free parking in the garage under Works with auto entry at 25 South 3rd Street.
|
Friday
May 15
|
Submissions deadline for the 2026 Kiyoshi & Kiyoko Tokutomi Memorial Haiku Contest. The contest kigo and other details can be found here. |
Saturday
June 6
11 AM – 6 PM |
Haiku at the Japanese Cultural Fair in Santa Cruz. Further details will be available here as they become known.
|
Saturday
July 11
In Person |
In-person Tanabata Celebration, Bay Area California. Further details will be available here as they become known. |
Wednesday
July 15 |
Submissions deadline (YTHS members only) for the third 2026 Geppo. Guidelines for YTHS members only to submit to Geppo can be found here. |
Saturday
August 1 |
Deadline for registration and payment for the 2026 YTHS Haiku Retreat at Asilomar, CA. Details for the 2026 Retreat can be found below
Also deadline for ordering extra copies of the 2025 YTHS Members’ Anthology at preproduction prices. For more information visit the Store.
|
Saturday
August 29
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time; note date change) |
YTHS All-Member Annual Meeting, Election of Officers, and Planning for 2027. Please join 15 minutes early, so the meeting can begin on time. Hosted by President Linda Papanicolaou. |
Thursday-Sunday
September 10-13
In Person |
YTHS Annual Retreat, Asilomar Conference Center, Pacific Grove, CA.
A flyer with details and registration information for the Retreat can be found here.
|
Thursday
October 15 |
Submissions deadline (YTHS members only) for the fourth 2026 Geppo. Guidelines for YTHS members only to submit to Geppo can be found here. |
Saturday
October 24
In Person |
Moon Viewing Celebration, in CA. Note change from second Saturday, to coincide with the full moon. Further details will be available here as they become known. |
Saturday
November 14
4 PM – 6 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time; note time change) |
“Four Seasons: How They Came and Are Gone in Japan” by Emiko Miyashita, YTHS dōjin and dōjin for the Shin (Dawn) group in Japan, and by Yuzo Ono, Tokutomi Contest judge. |
Saturday
December 12
11 AM – 1 PM
Via Zoom (Pacific Time) |
Virtual Holiday Party with members’ haiku/ haiga/photo-ku slideshow |
