Tazuko (Motohashi) Okuda passed away on Friday, August 21, 2026, at age 91. She was born the second of six daughters in 1935 in Tokyo, Japan. After marrying in 1962, she lived variously in Suriname, (British) Guyana, Mexico, and finally settled in Southern California in 1970. With her sister Shigeko Stites, she opened a fabric store in Baldwin Park. After innumerable commissions to design and create individual wedding and prom dresses, school group flag carrier and drill team uniforms, and show choir and Sweet Adelines choral costumes, they transitioned their store into a dressmaking business for more than 20 years. 

Devoted to her family, Tazuko is survived by her husband, Karl K. Okuda; daughters Mika K. Erickson and Mari C. Okuda; grandchildren Emily Erickson and husband, Jake Black, and Adam Erickson; nephews Michael, John, and Jamie (Masa) Stites; and grandnephews Michael Tyler and Aaron Stites. She is also survived by her sisters Yukiko, Yoko, and Atsuko, and many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and -nephews in New Jersey, Hawaii, and Japan. Her ashes were interred on Saturday, September 19, in the Rainbow Gardens section of Rose Hills Memorial Park, 3888 Workman Mill Road, Whittier, CA.