Akiko Yokotsuka Feece's Obituary
Akiko Feece Obituary
Akiko Yokotsuka Feece died in hospice care after a lengthy battle with Frontotemporal dementia and Lewy Body dementia. She was 86. Per her wishes no services will be held. After cremation her ashes will be spread by family in her favorite home, Hawaii.
Born on January 29, 1939 in Shanghai, she was the third daughter of businessman Shin Yokotsuka and Katsu Eguchi. Her parents made education a top priority while raising the family in Tokyo, Japan. While dreaming of studying poetry, she ended up focusing on international business.
A graduate of the Kunitachi School in Tokyo, Akiko had a strong desire to learn as much as possible. She devoured classic world literature, quickly mastering English and speed typing. She worked her way up and continued her education by obtaining multiple professional certifications. She was proud of her work while at the University of Notre Dame. Repeatedly receiving glowing letters of recommendation from each of her managers for her incredible work ethic. Akiko not only served as a translator in the Japan Pavilion office, she was commended for her significant contributions to the promotion of cultural exchanges between Japan and the United States during the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville.
Being blindsided by divorce only made Akiko more determined to provide the best possible life for her only child. After living in Japan and Hawaii for several years, Akiko decided to relocate to the booming city of Houston, Texas, where she spent 23 years working for JETRO Houston (Japan External Trade Organization). In this position she met people from all over the world, connecting them with the tools they needed to move forward in business. Her career included teaching others about import/export and running the office library while serving as Assistant Director of Trade Inquiry.
After her retirement, she returned to her beloved Hawaii, keeping busy with weekly trips to the library and visiting with friends. Akiko took part in the Na Kupuna senior program, taking free college courses at the University of Hawaii Manoa, to continue her love of learning. Coming to terms with her memory loss was especially hard on her when she could no longer enjoy reading. Nevertheless, her life proved that the spirit of Gaman was ingrained deep within her soul, a Japanese Zen Buddhist term that means enduring difficult situations with patience, dignity, inner strength, and perseverance. Akiko embodied all these qualities, as she was known for her determination and fierce independence.
Her hobbies and interests included a deep love of travel, viewing fine art in museums, opera, reading, poetry, learning new languages, playing piano, watching films, Wheel of Fortune and figure skating. Her main life regret was not visiting more cities on her travel wish list.
Akiko was preceded in death by her brother Fumio, sister Setsuko and Daiji Namiki, her parents, and her life-long best friend Toyoko Kluvo. Akiko is survived by her daughter Yvonne K. Tran and her wife Lisa Tran of Houston, Texas, her sister Kiyoko Yokotsuka of Tokyo, Japan, niece Mina Watanabe, husband Masaaki, their sons Reona and Kotaro, niece Yumi Aoe, husband Kazumasa, their sons Shunsuke (Runa), Ryuji and Keita, as well as Toyoko's son John Kluvo and daughter Pamela Kluvo.
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