Deepest sympathies to the Okamoto/Kita families. I am so grateful that my parents met Kyoko and Hatch in the late '40s in Tokyo. "Auntie" Kyoko was an extraordinary woman.  Talents so numerous it is hard to imagine that she wasn't expert in all fields. Her ability and willingness to share her expertise was inspiring.  Elegance, grace, beauty, laughter and sweetness come to mind when I think of her.  Kyoko and Hatch will forever be in our hearts.

Sensei Kita was such a blessing in my life. Her teachings reached deep within me and ignited my own artistry. Sometimes I am able to channel her teachings into arrangements that give someone else pause...initiating a moment when they stop in delight and wonder. So she positively influenced many people that she would never meet.  In addition, Sensei helped to transform my everyday experiences of nature and the world. Whereas once I passed by things I deemed ordinary, now I see beauty even in the common place.  I will be forever grateful for the gift of her in my life. My heart goes out to all the family and especially Asako and her dear friend Ruby. With respect and gratitude, Gregory Gaiser (formerly from Boulder)

How privileged I was to have studied with Sensei Kyoko Kita for many years. Her friendship, talent and inner beauty will always remain in my heart and mind. Her passing is a great loss for all of us.

Mrs. Kita was my inspiration, giving me,  years of joy, and meeting wonderful people, by encouraging me to pursue flower arranging, which will continue in her gentle spirit--
  Jane Summers

My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief.  May your memories bring you comfort.

I want to offer condolences to aunty Kyoko's family.  I can only imagine how much you will miss your beloved sister, sister-in-law and aunt.  I last saw her at our family reunion in Las Vegas in June and remember being amazed by how youthful,lively and happy
she looked.  She simply glowed!  And, as always, she greeted family members with warmth and humor.  Her legacy lives on in all those who knew and cherished her.

I will always remember Mrs. Kita for her warmth and patience with all of her many students, and I am proud to be one of them!  She has changed my life in many ways!  I will remember her with every flower I arrange in the future!  She was Loved and will be greatly missed!

Mrs. Kita taught more by example than words.  Her elegant way of being, her deft adjustments to a flower arrangement, her quiet, knowing ways will always have a resting place in the hearts of those of us who were privileged to be her students.

Beloved Mrs. Kita,

Thank you for the years of lessons, humor, critiques and generosity.  I especially remember entering your home.  I deeply appreciated your fresh arrangements, the classical music you had playing and your ability to attract wonderful people from all over the world to you!

Loving you,

My home and my life are filled with the beauty of flowers - thanks to Mrs. Kita. She has touched my artful eye.  I will miss her.  Quinn Reed

Mrs. Kita's important Ikebana life lessons about balance, focal point, and authentic beauty became a part of who I am today.  I'm forever grateful to her.

I had the pleasure of knowing Kita-san for over 30 years. She did more than anyone I can think of to further the propagation and understanding of Japanese arts such as flower arranging, tea ceremony and traditional cooking in the Denver metro area. 
Always gracious, kind and elegant, I will miss her very much but am very happy and privileged to have had her in my life.

I had the pleasure of knowing Kita-san for over 30 years. She did more than anyone I can think of to further the propagation and understanding of Japanese arts such as flower arranging, tea ceremony and traditional cooking in the Denver metro area. Always gracious, kind and elegant, I will miss her very much but am very happy to have had her in my life.

Dear Sensei, Thank you for sharing your love of life with us.  You will always be an inspiration to me.  Amazing woman, rest in peace.  Love, Eileen W.

Aunty Kyoko was the matriarch of the Kita family and a venerable teacher of the Japanese arts.  As far as I can remember, she has been a beautiful woman who has carried herself with such grace and dignity.    Her English, and I’m sure her Japanese, were impeccable, but more importantly, her words were spoken with love, humor, and kindness.  It is comforting to know that she lived such a full and active life and that she knew how loved she was.  I will miss her and her beautiful, knowing, smile.

While I have been fortunate to have known Kyoko among many wonderful Aunts and Uncles, Kyoko was an especially remarkable and giving person to both family, friends, and her community.  Having had so many wonderful times with her, I shall still regret not learning more from her.

I was very lucky to acquaint with Kita-Sensei as one of the students of her Japanese Cooking Class.  Not only she was a cooking teacher but also she was a great teacher of Japanese Sogetsu School flower arrangement and Tea Ceremony and taught to a large number of students in this community.  It meant that she introduced Japanese living traditional culture to Colorado and the West.  Her warm and kind personality will stay with me as a precious memory the rest of my live.  Fuji Murakami, Denver, CO

Beloved Sensei with eyes that sparkled, thank you for your dedication to each of us who wished to learn the essence of simple beauty. Your life and being were an expression of that. Your legacy will be long remembered.

I was so very deeply saddened to hear of Aunty Kyoko’s death. My first memories of her go back to my childhood in Hawaii when she would come to visit Grandma & Grandpa Tamaribuchi in Kailua – that was back in the 1960s. She was always so loving, kind, gentle, selfless, talented and beautiful. She was an amazing woman that I have long admired and respected. She will be so dearly missed but she will also hold a special place in my heart, in all the many hearts that she touched.
With love,

OBITUARY

Kyoko Kita

24 March, 1926 – 10 September, 2010

Olinger Funeral, Cremation & Cemetery - Crown Hill

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