Rio Imamura has passed away

Hello,

It is with a heavy heart to notify you of the passing of my father, Rio Imamura, this morning at the age of 93. He died peacefully at a hospice in Kitakyushu Japan, near his apartment where he spent the last 20 years enjoying his retirement in active fashion.

Please say a prayer and remember some of the moments you spent with him as we celebrate his life. He is probably already making friends wherever he is now.

I'd like to share a brief account of his journey.

Rio Imamura (1931-2024)

Father, Husband, Grandfather, Great Grandfather, Kyocera Corporate Secretary (retired), Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM)

The oldest of 4 children, Rio was born in Imabari, Shikoku Japan to Takeo and Tomiko Imamura. As the eldest son, he was responsible for gathering food for his family during the hard times of World War II and its aftermath.

Rio studied Economics and English at Osaka University. He had a life-long fascination with Shakespearean plays and told the story of how he would go to the movie theatre to see “Hamlet” just to practice his English by recitIng soliloquies along with the movie.

After college, Rio worked for Yokogawa Electric. He married Tamiko Ide in 1958 and celebrated the birth of both of his children before moving his family to New York City in 1963. After returning to Tokyo in 1969, Rio continued working for Yokogama Electric for another 4 years. In 1973, Rio changed companies to work for Kyocera International Inc., and moved his family to San Diego, California, where he eventually retired in 2004.

Community service minded, Rio helped to establish Minato Gakuen, a San Diego non-profit Japanese Language school dedicated to supplementing education in Japanese language. Rio also had the opportunity to represent his company, and served as a board member to establish the Japanese Friendship Garden at Balboa Park. This garden has grown and matured into a jewel of the park. Through this work, Rio befriended Clara Breed, the head librarian for the San Diego City Library.

After retirement, Rio and his wife Tamiko settled in Kyushu. Rio was instrumental in founding an English-speaking Toastmasters (TM) chapter in Kitakyushu. Rio participated in several international Toastmasters conferences, served as an evaluator at TM competitions, and earned the Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) title, the highest level of educational achievement in Toastmasters. Rio became TM’s educational & training director, representing all of Japan.

Another project Rio took on in retirement was to translate Joanne Oppenheimer’s book Dear Miss Breed from English to Japanese. Rio believed this work, which chronicled Clara Breed’s efforts to help displaced Japanese-American children sent to internment camps during WWII, was important for Japanese natives (especially children) to discover. He translated, self-published, and promoted this work enthusiastically. Over the years, Rio cultivated many friendships. He shared his travelogues and stories on his Blog…riosloggers-Riodan.blogspot.com.

Rio had an impact on many lives and will be missed by all who knew him. Rio and Tamiko celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary in January 2024.

Rio is survived by his wife Tamiko Imamura, son Kirk Imamura (wife Chieko Imamura) and daughter Yukina Warner (husband Raymond Warner). He is also survived by his grandchildren Raymond Warner IV, Alina Russ (husband Wyatt Russ) and 1-year old Great Granddaughter Jade Russ, as well as his sister-in-law Kiyoko Ide.