Sherman Iida shadowed his mentor Steve Kawano the past few years, soaking up Kawano's wisdom and can-do spirit as he led the annual Japanese Food and Cultural Bazaar at the Buddhist Church of Sacramento.

Now, after 15 years as chairman, Kawano has stepped down. It's Iida's turn to guide the more than 700 volunteers as they put on the 65th annual bazaar at the Jodo Shinshu temple on the corner of Riverside Boulevard and X Street. The bazaar will be from noon until 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

"Steve gets to kick back and drink some beer this year," said Iida, 57, of Lincoln. "He deserves it. He's led us to some of our best bazaars ever, especially last year's."

Iida said that as long as the temperature stays in the double digits, the church expects to host as many as 30,000 people during the weekend. It's difficult to get an accurate head count, he said, because no tickets are sold or handed out. The event is free. Japanese food and drink are available for purchase, and there are children's carnival games for a nominal fee, as well. The number of people who flock to the food tents and stand in beer lines each year help fund the church for its approximately 1,000-member Sangha, or congregation.

Attendance is so high every year that there is a shuttle bus between a nearby state parking lot at W and Seventh streets and the church.

And because of those crowds, the logistics of feeding them are as daunting as the statistics are impressive. Five tons of teriyaki chicken, six tons of ice to cool the sushi fish and the drinks, two tons of rice and 500 pounds each of shrimp and noodles will be consumed or used by 9 p.m. Sunday when Iida gathers his army of cleaners.

After 65 years, it's safe to say they've got this planning thing down.

"When I started working the bazaar in the late 1960s, I was a grunt and worked my way up to bazaar chair in the late 1970s," said Mike Nagai, 78, of Greenhaven. "The bazaar continues to evolve and improve each year. We used to build the food booths out of two-by-fours every year and then tear them down, which was a lot of work. Now we have more permanent structures and we just throw canvas over them and we're fine for the weekend. We have big A-frames now, too, and we hang canvas from them for shade."

Nagai said the bazaar is still labor- intensive – and always will be. But the volunteers look forward to the hard work every year because it gives them a chance to visit with friends they haven't seen since the previous year.

"It's about the fellowship," said Nagai, who moved to the area in 1966. "We get the chance to renew old and new acquaintances, and that keeps people coming back and volunteering. It's hard work, but it's also a lot of fun."

Nagai said he's been to every bazaar since 1967 except for one about a decade ago when he went on an Alaskan cruise. "I caught some (flak) for that," he said. "I haven't missed one since."

Iida said both reverends, Bob Oshita and Peter Inokoji-Kim, will answer questions about Buddhism at 5 p.m. each day. The purpose, however, isn't to win converts, Iida said. Rather, the goal is to promote understanding and bring the community together while celebrating Japanese culture and customs.

Entertainment includes the Koyasan Taiko Group at noon Saturday and the Sacramento Taiko Dan at 4 p.m. Sunday. There also are several Japanese traditional dance and musical groups, as well as martial arts demonstrations, on the schedule.

"This all started in 1946 just as the Japanese Americans were returning from the internment camps," Iida said. "But it didn't take long for the bazaar to turn into a significant cultural event in Sacramento. There has always been a strong sense of dedication to this event, and there's never been a doubt that it will continue each and every year."

Mark Billingsley is a Carmichael-based freelance writer.

Bazaar by the numbers

• One and a half tons of rice cooked for traditional Japanese cuisine

• 10,000-plus pounds of chicken for chicken teriyaki

• 400 pounds of shrimp used for tempura and sushi

• 1,500 pounds of beef prepared for teriyaki meat sticks and sandwiches

• 500 pounds of noodles prepared for hot and cold dishes

• 150 gallons of soy sauce used to create authentic marinades

• 500 pounds of sugar and 100 pounds of salt used in preparation of various seasonings

– Sacramento Buddhist Church Bazaar

© Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.