Jacqueline Yoshioka-Braid
A Gen-Xer, Jacqueline Yoshioka-Braid was born and raised in Aotearoa New Zealand to a Japanese mother and Kiwi father. In her twenties and thirties she spent a number of years living and working in Japan where she discovered not only the roots of her Japanese family, but also the language and culture of her mother. These days, Jacky lives in Hawke’s Bay with her mother and works as an education faciliator for Massey University and dabbles in photography in her spare time.
Updated October 2021
Stories from This Author
Japanese Kiwi
Oct. 7, 2021 • Jacqueline Yoshioka-Braid
I descend from a long line of samurai families. I am the fifth of six children of my parents, Taeko Yoshioka and Noel Braid. My parents met during the Japanese Occupation when Dad was on R&R there during his tour of duty in the Korean War. At 25 years old, he was a gunner in the 16th Field Regiment and my mother, 19, worked in a small, family noodle restaurant. My mother had a privileged upbringing as a child. My …
