HARUO HOWE HANAMURA's Obituary
Haruo 'Howe' HanamuraHowe Hanamura died on August 18, 2012 at the age of 93. He passed away peacefully at home in El Cerrito, surrounded by his family. Howe was born on April 10, 1919 in Alameda, CA, where he attended Porter School and the Buena Vista United Methodist Church. Howe always loved sports and games and he played basketball, football and threw the discus for Alameda High School. At 6 feet, Howe was tall for a Japanese American of his generation, and he often towered over his opponents, playing for the Japanese American Alameda Mudhens football team and the Acorns basketball team. He read voraciously, recited poetry by heart and earned a bachelors degree in economics from the University of California at Berkeley in 1940. Howe went on to serve in the now famous 442 Regimental Combat Team, 3rd Battalion, Company L. He was an infantryman and squad leader who eventually was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and a Presidential Unit Citation. Howe and the surviving Japanese American vets from his unit were the subject of a film produced by his daughter Wendy, “Honor Bound: A Personal Journey” ' highlighting men who served bravely in the US military during WWII while their families were detained behind barbed wire, their loyalties questioned. He took part in some of the most storied battles of WWII, including the liberation of Bruyeres, France, the Rescue of the Lost Battalion, and the battle of the Gothic Line in Italy, where he was wounded. Howe lived long enough to see his unit receive the Congressional Gold Medal in a ceremony this past February.Returning to the Bay Area at the war's end, Hanamura married Mary Tsuchiya in 1949 and they went on to raise three children in Oakland, CA. He worked on the earliest computers at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory as a computer programmer and systems analyst during a career there that spanned 35 years. Learning to cook as a young teen, Howe would often make his specialties'apple pie, chow mein, ravioli, and for decades he barbecued teriyaki chicken for the Buena Vista Church bazaar. Throughout his life, he was also an avid golfer'once scoring a tournament-winning 'torrid par''while competing with the Hi-Fli and Swinging Samurai Golf Clubs. Upon retiring, Howe loved caring for his four grandsons with Mary'taking them to the African Hall in Golden Gate Park, the train at Tilden, Oakland Zoo and walking them to pre-school. For more than a decade, Mary and Howe would gather various children and grandchildren for dinner every Sunday, where he would play cribbage, hearts and Scrabble with anyone willing to challenge him. Even after losing a leg to diabetes in 2000, Howe never lost his zest for life–always looking forward to the next meal, the next game, or the next excursion with Mary. Thanks to her loving care, he beat the odds and lived to see three grandsons enter college and a fourth excel, as he had, at high school track and basketball. Howe and Mary were married for 62 years and she says she always woke up each morning, glad they could share another day together. Howe is survived by his wife, Mary, his son, Steven, his daughter Julie and son-in-law Wes Fukumori, his daughter Wendy and son-in-law Michael Okagaki, and his four grandsons, Ryan and Derek Fukumori and Jonathan and Kenny Okagaki. He leaves behind one brother, John Hanamura, and many loving nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews in the Hanamura and Tsuchiya families. A memorial service will be held at Buena Vista United Methodist Church in Alameda, Saturday, September 15 at 2 pm with a reception to follow.
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