On February 23rd, at 5PM | Hilton Garden Inn, San Diego Mission Valley/Stadium | $45 Attedance Fee incl. a light dinner.
| In 1966, Hiro was born in Amakusa city’s Kumamoto prefecture. At the age of 13, he started loosing his sight, becoming totally blind at the age of 16. In 2006, he and his family moved to San Diego for their daughter’s future. Continuing to sail in San Diego, he pursued his dream of sailing across the Pacific, the biggest ocean in the world. In 2013, Hiro attempted sailing across the Pacific with a Japanese newscaster, Mr. Jiro Shinbo. They left Fukushima, Japan on June 16th, sailing towards San Diego. On June 21st, they collided with a whale and their sailboat sank. They survived in a liferaft for 11 hours with 15 foot waves and 30 knot wind before getting rescued by the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force.
After 6 months, he started searching for the meaning of his collision with a Hilton Garden Inn, San Diego Mission Valley/Stadium 15 Balboa Ave Escondido Fwy whale, just as he searched for the meaning of his vision loss. He finally found it: make his future success 1 million times bigger. Hiro started looking for a sailing partner for his second challenge of sailing across the Pacific. He was introduced to Doulglas Smith through a mutual friend.
Hiro and Doug left San Diego on Feb. 24th, 2019, and after 55 days, successfully arrived in Fukushima, Japan on Apr. 20th. That day, he became the first totally blind sailor to cross the Pacific. Now, he works as a motivational speaker, inspiring people at companies, organizations, and schools. Hiro received the Prime Minister’s Award in 2019, Naomi Uemura Adventure award in 2020, and Fervent Award from CTK Cultural & Educational Foundation in 2021.
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