Lena Cramer

Lena Cramer passed away on December 21, 2020. She was born on November 5, 1933 in Tachikawa, Japan. She was the daughter of Genroku and Kame Hisada, of Tachikawa. Lena was preceded in death by her parents, husband James Cramer of Fayetteville AR, daughter Marilyn Pyeatt Fry of North Richland Hills TX, grandson Tim Bailey of Lewisville TX, sister Muma Hisada of Tokyo, Japan, and brothers Eiicho and Isao, also of Tokyo. She was a member of St Vincent’s Cathedral Church in Bedford TX.

Lena grew up in war-torn Japan and survived the horrors of the atomic blasts that decimated nearby Hiroshima and Nagasaki. She never forgot the difficult times her family faced in the post-war Japan reconstruction but also didn’t let it prevent her from living a full life.

After graduating from high school, Lena put her typing skills to use and join the secretarial pool at Tachikawa Air Force Base near Tokyo. There she met and married a young sergeant, Tilman Pyeatt, who was a native of Warm Springs Arkansas, in December 1956. She soon settled down as a homemaker after giving birth to their daughter Marilyn the following year.

Since Tilman was a military man, Lena knew it meant moving on a regular basis as his assignments changed. Shortly after her oldest son, Gene, was born in April 1960, Tilman was transferred stateside to the AFB in Victorville CA. Lena left her native land and moved with her young family to the United States.

In true military fashion, the family continued to move around. After 2 years in Victorville, the family spent a little over 2 years at Homestead FL near Miami. While in Homestead, she gave birth to her 3rd child, son Lehman, in 1963. After this tour, they spent another 4 years in the little town of Dunlay TX, outside of San Antonio while her husband was stationed at Lackland AFB. The family moved to Springdale Arkansas at the end of his assignment at Lackland.

By this time all 3 of her kids were in school with Marilyn approaching her teenage years, so Lena decided to re-join the workforce. She became the head waitress at a locally-owned establishment in Fayetteville Arkansas, Suzie Wong’s Rice Bowl. She and Tilman eventually separated, but Lena continued to work and raise her 3 kids, with help from her now ex-husband.

Lena was a very talented seamstress and over the years she created many garments for herself and her kids. When the restaurant was forced to fold in the mid-1980’s. she decided to make a career change and went to work at the Brass Buckle in Fayetteville as a master seamstress and alteration expert. She also met and married her 2nd husband, Jim Cramer, in 1991. Their happiness was cut short by Jim’s untimely death in May 1992

She spent 8 years at the Buckle before deciding to retire in 1995 and relocate to the Dallas Texas area to be near her 2 oldest children, Marilyn and Gene, who had both moved to North Texas several years earlier for their careers. However, Lena didn’t give up her sewing skills and soon went to work part-time at Hancock Fabrics, selling fabric, sewing on the side, and making new friends. Lena was eventually forced to retire in the late 2000’s due to failing eyesight. She spent her remaining years enjoying time

with her kids and 2 grandkids, as well as her close friends in the community where she settled in Hurst TX. Despite suffering through some difficult times in her life, Lena always put her children first, giving so much and never expecting anything in return.

Lena is survived by her sons, Gene Pyeatt and wife Marsha of Trophy Club TX, Lehman Pyeatt and wife Jennifer of Las Vegas NV, granddaughter Amber Wilkinson and husband Jacob Wilkinson of Grapevine TX, and grandson Evan Pyeatt, USMC, of San Diego CA.

A memorial service will be held at St Vincent’s Cathedral in Bedford TX at 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 2, 2021.