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Willie Tahara
Willie Harutoshi Tahara, 89, died April 27, 2008, at the Oregon Veterans Home in The Dalles.
He was born in Seattle, March 12, 1919, to Masaye (Masumura) and Harukichi Tahara.
Willie was raised in Seattle, graduating from Garfield High School and then the University of Washington with a degree in forest engineering.
When World War II broke out, his family was relocated to the Minidoka internment camp near Hunt, Idaho.
Willie enlisted in the United States Army and served in the 232nd Engineer of the 442nd Regiment. He served in France and Italy and received a Purple Heart.
In the mid 1950’s Willie met Yoshiko Nakatsu and the couple married in Seattle in 1957. They moved to Glenwood, and Willie began working for J. Neils Lumber Company.
After living in Glenwood for 12 years, Willie and Yoshiko moved to White Salmon.
He worked for St. Regis and Champion International until retirement.
Since 2004, Willie had been a resident at the Oregon Veterans Home. He enjoyed fishing, reading, crossword puzzles, Mariners baseball, University of Washington Huskies football, and picking mushrooms. He loved spending time with his grandchildren and was very active in St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Hood River.
He was preceded in death by a sister, Ruth Yasutake.
Survivors include his wife, Yoshiko, of Hood River; daughter, Joanne and Steve Angell of Seattle; son, Patrick Tahara and Jennifer Akiyama, of Kensington, Calif.; sister, Mary Okazaki and brother, Dante Tahara both of Chicago; sister, Dorothy Handa of Madison, Wis.; and two grandchildren Kazuhiro and Emiko.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on May 19, at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Hood River.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Willie’s memory to the the University of Washington College of Forest Resources.
Gardner Funeral Home in White Salmon, handled cremation arrangements. |
