AGAWA, RACHEL (FURUYA) (1934 - 2011)

Rachel Agawa

     Rachel Nakako Furuya (Poston 26-9-BC) was born on May 11, 1934 in El Centro, California to Japanese immigrants, Matazo and Yoki (Itayagoshi) Furuya. She grew up with three sisters and five brothers and her father was a ranch foreman at the vegetable farms in the Imperial Valley.
     Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the signing of Executive Order 9066,   Rachel her family members, Matazo, Yoki, Suzue, Shoji, Koichi Tom, Jinzo Jimmie, Reizo Ray, and Tomoko Sophie, were evacuated and incarcerated at the Poston, Arizona concentration camp 1 on May 21, 1942. Rachel attended the Poston I Elementary School. Nobuko Grace was born in the winter of 1944 at Poston. Her sister Suzue left the Poston camp to resettle in New York City at the end of January in 1945.    

     Rachel, her parents and the rest of the Furuya family left Poston on September 13, 1945 and headed to Fresno, California. The Furuya family resettled in Kerman, California where Rachel went to school until her family moved to Santa Maria in 1948. Rachel was a 1952 graduate of Santa Maria High School and the school newspaper editor of The Breeze. After high school, Rachel attended Merritt College in Berkeley, California for two years.
     Rachel married Jim Agawa on November 14,1953 in the Christ United Methodist Church in Santa Maria by Reverend Oshita. They lived in the Santa Maria Valley, and spent leisure time frequently going to Lake Nacimiento, as well as Mammoth Pool, Lake Powell, and Lopez Lake. They also traveled to Fiji, Hawaii, Japan, Mexico and Branson, and took many cruises. Rachel was a contestant on the television game show, The Price is Right with Bob Barker.

     Rachel had a talent for arts and crafts, cake decorating, painting, dried flowers, and photography. She was also an avid Bridge player, fantastic cook and natural entertainer.

     Rachel Nakako (Furuya) Agawa, died on January 6, 2011 at the age of 76. She was preceded in death by her parents, Matazo (1956) and Yoki Furuya (1966); and brothers, Ichiro and Tom Koichi (1997).

     She is survived by her husband Jim; daughters, Debi Hernandez (Andy), and Barbie Maddox;  sisters, Susie Nakamura, Sophie Shimizu, and Rose Hawkins; brothers Shoji Furuya, Ray Furuya, and Jimmy Furuya;  and grandsons Cort, Nick and Nolan Maddox.

Published in Santa Maria Times on January 11, 2011

TAJII, FUMI (FUJIMOTO) 1927 -2012

Fumi Tajii

     Fumi (Fujimoto) Taji (308-5-A) was born in December, 1927 in Arroyo Grande, California to Japanese immigrant vegetable farmers, Bunzo and Hatsume Fujimoto. Her father immigrated to the U.S. in 1906, and her mother immigrated in 1919.

     Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, her family voluntarily evacuated from Arroyo Grande which was in Military Zone 1 and temporarily resettled in Orange Cove. Her father, Bunzo was picked up by the FBI and incarcerated at the Bismarck, North Dakota Department of Justice internment camp.  Several months later however, the family was  forced to evacuate with people of Japanese ancestry living in the eastern Fresno County and Tulare County  area to the Poston, Arizona concentration camp 3. 

     Hatsume, Kenji Albert and Toku arrived at Poston (308-5-A) on August 4, 1942. Kingo Frank and Fumi arrived at Poston on August 11, 1942. Her father, Bunzo was finally granted parole and joined his family at Poston on August 17, 1942. While at Poston, Fumi was a member of the Girls League, and graduated with the Parker Valley High School class in 1945.

Parker Valley High School Class of 1945

 Photo: Fumi Taji is seated third from the left. 

Photo courtesy of Wayne Koga.

      Kingo Frank and Keji Albert Fujimoto left Poston and went to Santa Fe, New Mexico on September 9, 1945.  While at the Santa Fe internment camp, they met Gengo Tajii, who later would become Fumi's husband.

     Fumi, her parents,  and sister Toku, left Poston on September 24, 1945 and went to  resettle in the Santa Barbara area. Fumi found employment as a housekeeper in Los Angeles, and her brothers went to work picking grapes in Fresno with Gengo Tajii and his brother. Later, the Fujimoto and Tajii families relocated to Morgan Hill, to sharecrop strawberries.  

     Fumi Fujimoto and Gengo Tajii were married in 1950 and settled in San Jose.  They purchased 10 acres of land and raised strawberries and harvested prunes. Fumi gave birth to five children. Her son John died at birth and her daughter Sharon died at the age of five. As the family grew, it was determined they could not rely on farming to achieve financial security.  The ranch was sold in 1964 and they moved to Santa Rosa. Gengo became general manager for Country Garden Nursery and in 1970 became a landscape manager for Cagwin and Dorward in Santa Rosa, with his work frequently featured at the Sonoma County Fair.

     Fumi Taji was a member of the Enmanji Buddhist Temple in Sebastopol, the Sonoma County Japanese American Citizens League, and a board member of Enman No Tomo committee. She was a longtime Santa Rosa resident, and died at the age of 84 years, on August  27, 2012, following a long battle with liver disease. She was predeceased by her husband Gengo (2000); father Bunzo (1972); mother, Hatsume (1992); son, John (1960), and daughter Sharon (1959); and brother, Frank Kingo (2011).

     She is survived by her daughter, Phyllis (Henry) Kaku of Petaluma, and Donna Tajii of Elk Grove; son, Ronald (Janet) Tajii of Torrance; brother, Albert Fujimoto; and sister, Toku Matsumoto.

Source:

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20120902/ARTICLES/120909965/1036/business?Title=Fumi-Tajii

KADOWAKI, TOSHIKO (FUJIMOTO) (1918-2012)

Toshi & Joe G. Kadowaki

     Toshiko "Toshi"( Fujimoto) Kadowaki (Poston 46-9-B)  was born on February 8, 1918, in Gardena, California to Japanese immigrant farmers,  Matsu and Masao Fujimoto. Toshi participated in high school sports and played the violin for an all-female orchestra.  Later, she attended beauty school to help earn money for the family. On July 27, 1940, Toshi married Joe George Kadowaki in Los Angeles. They had a daughter, Emiko Janet born several weeks following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941.   

     The Kadowaki family relocated to Parlier in Fresno County and unfortunately on August 4, 1942, they were  evacuated and relocated to the Poston Arizona concentration camp 1, block  46-9-B. While at Poston, Toshi  supervised the beauty shops. The Kadowaki family departed from Poston on December 10,1943 and went to resettle in Cleveland, OH.

     On July 3, 1944, Joe reported for military service at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. T/Sgt. Joe G. Kadowaki served with the 442nd RCT Company E in the European Theatre during World War II.  The family moved to Cleveland and for 30 years she owned a downtown shop, Toshi's Beauty Salon.

     She worked part time for about 30 years until age 87 at Toledo Optical Laboratory Inc., where her late husband, Joe, was chairman. With a keen sense of color, developed through years of working with hair dye, she tinted eyeglass lenses.

     Joe Kadowaki often gave speeches on his life story to groups in the Toledo area. He felt more lost than bitter -- a man without a country.  Toshi sple very little about her life story,  even to her own family.  Things changed in the spring of 2012, when Toshi  was able to speak at her church, the Sylvania United Church of Christ.  Toshi and Joe were active members of the  Cleveland chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League for many decades.

      Toshi Kadowaki, died June 1, 2012 in Sylvania, Ohio at the age of 94. She was preceeded in death by her husband, Joe (2001).

     She is survived by her daughters, Janet Brothers and Kathy Tashima; sisters, Haruko Kobata, Teruko Kuwada, and Aiko Wada; brother, Sumi Fujimoto; six grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren.

Source: http://www.toledoblade.com/Deaths/2012/06/13/Toshi-Kadowaki-1918-2012-Beautician-rarely-discussed- internment-camp.html WWII-era-

FUJIMOTO, Masakazu Jack PhD

      Masakazu Jack Fujimoto was born in 1928  and raised in Encinitas, California to Morizo and Emi Annie Fujimoto, as the eldest of the six children.  On May 15, 1942, Jack, his parents, and siblings, Fumie, Yoko, Takashi, and Fujie, were evacuated from Encinitas and relocated to the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 28-2-D.   On September 8, 1945, the Fujimoto family left Poston and resettled in Encinitas, California, where his parents established a successful carnation farm.  Jack graduated from San Dieguito High School in Encinitas, and volunteered in the U.S. Army, where he was trained in Counter-Intelligence and served during the Korean conflict in 1950.

     Jack earned both a B.S. and M.B.A. degree from UCLA, and a PhD in Education in 1970. Dr. Jack Fujimoto was the first Japanese American college president in the mainland U.S. in 1977.  He has served as president of Sacramento City College, Los Angeles Mission College, West LA College, LA Pierce College and interim superintendent/president of Imperial Valley College. He also served for 12 years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley. 

     Jack has served as President of the Japanese Institute of Sawtelle, the West Los Angeles Buddhist Temple and the Japanese American Historical Society.  He was named 2003 Nisei Week Pioneer.  He has lectured to Japanese students at Kagoshima Junshin College and Kyushu Sangyo University. 

     Jack met his future wife, Grace at her father's store in West Los Angeles Sawtelle's Japantown.   They have four children, Crystal, Randy, Jolie and Maya.  Jack developed the book, "Sawtelle: West Los Angeles' Japantown".

Source: PR.com, Dawna Lee Heising of "Eye on Entertainment" Interviews Internationally Renowned Educator Dr. Jack Fujimoto"

FURUBAYASHI, Masato Jack (1917-2003)

     Masato Jack Furubayashi was born on February 28, 1917 in Kakaako, Oahu, Hawaii, the tenth child of Hichibei Enomoto and Sato Furubayashi.  

     During World War II, he was evacuated from Orange Cove, California and arrived at Poston, Arizona internment camp, block 326-13-D. While at Poston, he was worked for the Fire Department, and later went out of Poston on a temporary seasonal work pass to Maita, Montana.  He finally left Poston on August 22, 1944 to work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin before finally resettling at Salt Lake City. 

     On December 19, 1950, he married Noriko Maxine Hirano. Masato worked the Tooele Army Depot for 30 years and retired in 1979.

     Masato Jack Furubayashi passed away on November 9th, 2003. He was preceded in death by his parents, Hichibei Enomoto and Sato Furubayashi; siblings; Mamu Enomoto, Teru Kamada, Kenichi, Yoshitsugu Henry, Tetsuo, Takashi, Setsuko Sato, and Shizuko.

     Mas is survived by his wife, Maxine; daughter, Sandy (Paul) Iwasaki; sons, Glen (Susan), Mike (Connie), Scott (Joy); and sister, Chieko Nakanishi.

Source: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20031113/ai_n11431474/?tag=rel.res1

FUJIHARA, Joan Yaeko (Kanagawa) (1922-2011)

     Joan Yaeko Kanagawa was born on May 23, 1922 in Sanger, California to Yasoichi Tom and Sumi (Jitsuyo) Kanagawa.  Joan grew up on an orange orchard  on a  hill in Sanger with brothers Bob and Jerry and sisters Lois and Mary.  Joan attended Fresno State College for two years when her college education was interrupted by WW II. 

Mr & Mrs George Fujihara

      Joan was evacuated and sent to a Japanese internment camp, Poston camp II block 227-5-B in Arizona with her family.  While in camp, she met a missionary who invited her to church, and she was allowed to leave Poston for a baptism in Phoenix.     

    On April 26, 1947, Joan married George Fujihara, a track star, and they lived on a ranch in Del Rey where they raised raisins, peaches, and plums. Joan worked part time as a teacher's aide and enjoyed working with children, and she played the piano for the Sunday school.  Joan passed away on June 18, 2011.

     She is survived by her husband of 64 years, George Fujihara; children Richard, Mark (Alicia), and Glenn (Mary Ann) Fujihara; and grandchildren.

Source: http://obits.dignitymemorial.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Joan-Fujihara&lc=2455&pid=152117055&mid=4714927&locale=en-US