Anyone who met her was drawn in by her effervescent "smiling eyes" and welcoming grin… accentuated by her free-wheeling sense of humor, appetite for adventure and love of life's simplest pleasures.

Mabel Tsukuda was born in Los Angeles, California on May 24, 1930, a child of the Great Depression era.  She was the youngest, with two half-sisters and one half-brother from the city of Hiroshima in Japan, on her Father's side.  Her Mother was from Maui, Hawaii.

In 1942, during World War II, by order from President Roosevelt, Mabel and her parents, along with other Japanese-American citizens, were forced to pack whatever fit in one suitcase each — leaving everything else behind.  They were sent to Poston, Arizona, where an Internment Camp awaited them.

After Mabel's family were released from Poston in 1945, they moved to the Sawtelle area of West Los Angeles (Sawtelle Japantown), California.  They shared a home with three other families until they were able to find a home of their own in 1949.  This would be her life-long home.

Mabel graduated from University High School in West Los Angeles in 1949.  She began working at jobs which included hand-painting ceramic dishes, then eventually retiring in 1995, from a job where she worked on gyros for military use.

Mabel spent her retirement years visiting with her friends — some from her school days.  They met at the Japanese Institute of Sawtelle (JIS) for Senior luncheons.  Sometimes they planned excursions to go shopping and went on short road trips…including the occasional casino runs.

Mabel enjoyed gardening and working in her yard.  She enjoyed going out and trying different restaurants.  Yes, she was a foodie at heart.

She had a great love for animals — especially her dogs.

She was a "forever" friend to all that knew her.

Mabel reunited with her parents and life-long friends on December 21, 2024.

May you rest in peace beloved Cousin and Friend; you will be missed but remain "Forever in Our Hearts."