George M. Umemura

George Makoto Umemura passed away peacefully on Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at The Barrington, Carmel, Indiana. He was 97 years old. George was born on September 22, 1923 in Seattle Washington. He was the son of Charles Juzo Umemura and Yazuko Kondo Umemura. He attended the University of Washington until he was placed in a Japanese internment camp in Minidoka, Idaho. In September, 1942 he was permitted to leave the camp to continue his undergraduate studies at Ohio Wesleyan University where he graduated with a B.S. degree in business in 1946. George went on to Indiana University School of Business where he earned an MBA in 1948 and a Doctorate in Business in 1952. Upon finishing his post graduate degrees, George accepted a position with the Conference Board in New York City where he worked for four years. He moved to Indiana where he worked in market research at Eli Lilly and Company for nearly thirty years retiring in 1985. George was a man of many interests and community involvement. He was a founding and active member of Epworth United Methodist Church (UMC) until he joined St. Luke’s UMC for the last seven years of his life. He was a founding member of the Hoosier Chapter of the Japanese-American Citizen’s League. George taught market research at IU, Indianapolis for many years. He was President of the Indianapolis chapter, American Marketing Association. He was a regular attender of the Indianapolis Symphony, ran the Mini-Marathon for many years and when he was employed by Lilly he ran in the corporate challenge. George also loved traveling, coaching his sons in baseball and studying the Japanese language. George is survived by his wife of 70 years, Jean Kanno Umemura, his daughter, Catherine Foley (Bob), J. Wesley Umemura (Jill), Cary Umemura (Nancy), 7 grandchildren: Brianna Johnson-Diab (Mario), Preston Johnson (Erica), D. Brooks Johnson (Emily), Logan Johnson (Brittany), Cole Umemura, Joel Umemura, Bryan Foley (Andrea); and 9 great-grandchildren: Ella Diab, Charlize Diab, Duke Diab, Gemma Johnson, Finn Johnson, Mercy Johnson, Norie Johnson, Grayson Foley and McKinley Foley. A Celebration of Life will be held on July 10, 2021 from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM at Leppert Mortuary – Nora Chapel, 740 E. 86th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46240. To share a memory, please visit www.leppertmortuary.com.