A private family service for the late Lily Shimizu, 93-year-old, California born, resident of Gardena, who passed away on September 21, 2022, will be held at Gardena Valley Baptist Church.

Predeceased by her beloved husband, Takeo Shimizu, and son, Robert Dale; she is survived by her son, Richard (Cynthia) Shimizu; daughter, Miki (Glen) Hartung; granddaughters, Kaitlyn Shimizu, Elise (Chris) Manfre and Stacy Hartung; great-granddaughter, Eliana Manfre; she is also survived by nieces, nephews and other relatives.

Lily's Personal History

Lily Sakae Nagata was born on October 6, 1928, to Seitaro and Nui Nagata in Indio, California. Both her parents were immigrants from Yamaguchi-Ken in Japan who arrived in the early 1900s. Lily was the second daughter born to the couple. She had an older sister, Grace; a younger sister, Amy; and a younger brother, George.

The Nagata family owned and operated a "truck farm" in Indio, growing mainly tomatoes, but also other crops like string beans and corn. The crops were shipped by trucks to wholesale markets in Los Angeles. Seitaro managed the farm, while Nui was in charge of the packing shed. Lily and her siblings attended Roosevelt Elementary School in Indio.

"My sisters and I helped our parents after school mostly with house-cleaning and cooking meals.  Unlike the children in other farm families, we did not help out on the farm or work in the packing shed. My parents wanted us to concentrate on school work."

In 1942, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and America's declaration of war with Japan, President Roosevelt ordered that all persons of Japanese descent be relocated to internment centers away from the west coast. Lily and her entire family joined more than 110,000 other persons of Japanese ancestry (most of whom were American citizens) imprisoned in internment camps. Lily's family was sent to the Poston I Relocation Center located near Parker, Arizona.

"Our living quarters for the six of us was a single room in a wood and tar paper barrack. There was no running water, heater, or air conditioner."

The winters were frigid and summers were scorching. In Poston, the Nagata children continued their educations. Lily was in 8 ^th grade at the time of relocation. During her stay in Poston, Lily participated in a variety of sports and social activities and celebrated numerous cultural and religious holidays and traditions with family. When she reached high school, Lily was invited to join a popular girls' club called the Luanans.  Years after camp, many of the members tracked each other down. They and their families have been getting together regularly for many years.

After more than 3 years in Poston, the Nagata family was allowed to leave and return to their farm in Indio. Although most families who were interned lost everything, the Nagatas were lucky in that a loyal worker on the Nagata Farm had maintained and protected their property during their absence.

By this time, Lily resumed her education and graduated from Coachella Valley Union High School. Soon thereafter, Lily ventured off to Los Angeles to begin taking college courses in medical stenography at L.A. City College.

"It was quite a traumatic experience coming to live in a big city at a huge college on my own, straight out of a very small country high school and camp life before that."

To earn her way, Lily lived with a family doing "school girl," which was very common for girls going to college. It meant staying with a usually well-to-do family, doing light housework and helping with meal preparation.

While attending college, Lily met many other Japanese-American young men and women. One of them, Toshie Shimizu, had an older brother, Takeo – or Tak -- who had expressed an interest in Lily, but was too shy to act on it. Toshie soon introduced the two, there was instant attraction, and they began dating. They dated about a year and a half before entertaining the idea of marriage

Lily revealed just recently that about a year before their formal wedding, Tak's dad was so worried that if Tak didn't marry, he would get drafted into the Army. Because he depended so much on Tak, he sent them on a trip to Yuma, Arizona, to secretly marry.

Their actual, formal wedding took place on March 20, 1949, in Hollywood, where Tak and his family lived. The newlyweds moved into the bottom floor of the Shimizu house – just below Lily's new in-laws.

About a year later, Lily and Tak welcomed their first child, Robert Dale. Another year went by and another son, Richard Glenn (Dick), was born. As a full-time mom, Lily was kept busy.

As the boys grew older, Lily found the time to volunteer with the PTA, became a Cub Scout den mother, and volunteered as secretary for the church office.

In 1958, Lily and Tak welcomed a daughter, Miki Elise, into the family.

The Shimizu family made the decision to move to Gardena in 1960. All three kids enrolled in the local schools and participated in a variety of activities. Lily continued to be active in her children's lives. Among other things, she became Miki's Girl Scout leader, served with the PTA, and volunteered with the boys' Boy Scout mother's group.

Once Miki began school, Lily decided to look for a job. After trying out a few part-time jobs, Lily was hired as an executive secretary for Nissan Motor Corporation in 1972. Her responsibilities included planning and making arrangements for many trips and conferences taken by the Japan staff in the Engineering Department and various other administrative duties.

In September 1988, Lily and Tak welcomed their first grandchild, Elise, daughter of Miki. Lily and Tak loved their expanding family and Lily especially enjoyed planning and hosting family gatherings celebrating various holidays and events.

On September 11,1989, tragedy struck the Shimizu family – oldest son, Robert Dale passed away after a brief battle with lung cancer. He was only 39 years old.

In October 1993, Lily and Tak were blessed with a second grandchild, Kaitlyn. She is Dick's daughter.

Lily retired from Nissan in 1994, after 22 years of service. Tak had retired a few years prior. The two of them took many trips to Japan, Europe, and many parts of the U.S.  They enrolled in tai chi classes at church and couples dance lessons. They took the entire family on vacations to Lake Tahoe, Disney World, San Diego, and Hawaii.

In September 1996, Lily and Tak's third grandchild, Stacy, was born. She is Miki's second daughter.

In April 2020, Lily and Tak celebrated the birth of their first great-grandchild, Eliana Patricia Manfre.

In November 2020, Lily lost her husband, after 71 years of marriage. Tak had been in declining health and finally succumbed to cancer.

Soon thereafter, Lily moved into a pleasant residential care facility in Orange County to provide the 24-hour support that she needed. She led a more sedentary life and was well taken care of by a team of caregivers. This also gave Lily the opportunity to see her great-granddaughter (who lives in Orange County) more frequently.

On the morning of September 21, 2022, Lily passed away peacefully in her sleep.