Elwood Hwan Kim

He attended Cheonan Agricultural School before serving in the South Korean Army, where he saw fierce combat during the Korean War and was wounded in action.

After the war, he came to the United States to study at Lambuth College in Tennessee—where a professor gave him the name “Elwood” and where he met his future wife, Shirley, beginning a 68‑year marriage. The young couple later drove across the desert to Los Angeles, where he worked as an accountant at the Barbara Ann Bakery and continued his studies at USC.

In 1963, he moved his family to Tokyo to help his brother’s import‑export business, hoping to contribute to Korea’s post‑war recovery. Those years were full of energy, opportunity, and the entrepreneurial spirit that suited him so well.

Our father was known for his discipline, his love of golf and tennis, and a famously infectious laugh that could fill a room—and sometimes an entire neighborhood. He cherished good food, good drink, and, above all, his family. Holiday gatherings with children, nieces, nephews, and the younger generations were among his greatest joys.

He often reflected on the dramatic transformation of Korea during his lifetime and believed deeply that while circumstances change, a person’s conduct is the true measure of a life. He lived by that belief with sincerity, responsibility, and quiet strength.

He is remembered with love and gratitude by his family, who carry forward the values he lived so faithfully.