Dorothy Nobuko Tazumi was born in Sanger, CA in 1922 and passed away peacefully in Fresno, CA on January 22, 2020 at the age of 97. She was the 4th of seven children born to Minetaro and Tsuruye Nishimura.
Shortly after graduating from Sanger High School, Dorothy and her family were interned in the Poston Relocation Camp from 1942-1945. It was at the camp where she met and married Masashi Tazumi and celebrated 71 years of marriage before his passing in 2015.
After the war, Mas and Dorothy went to Cleveland, OH where their first daughter was born. They relocated to Fresno, CA where they had four more daughters. Besides being an amazing mother, “Baba”, seamstress and cook, she enjoyed caring for others’ children, being a homemaker and cleaning homes for clients who became longtime friends. She was also a member of the Fresno Betsuin Buddhist Temple and Women’s Association.
She is survived by daughters Karen (James) Chinn, Norma (Rene) Martin, Elaine (Richard) Flores, Terri (Brian) Horiuchi and Mimi (Joe) Zanone. She was “Baba” to 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren and 3 great-great-grandchildren. She is also survived by sisters-in-law, Alice Nishimura and Terrie Tazumi and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and their families. Dorothy was preceded in death by her siblings Grace (Henry) Okamoto, Alyce (Kay) Taniguchi, George (Mary) Nishimura, Amy (George) Taniguchi, Dora (Eddie) Ando, and Eddie Nishimura.
The family would like to thank Dr. Dennis Nakata for his many years of care, and the staff at Hinds Hospice for their care during Dorothy’s last days.
A Memorial Service will be held on Sunday, February 23, 2020 at 11:00 am at the Fresno Betsuin Family Dharma Center, 2690 E. Alluvial Ave, Fresno.
