Our sincere condolences to the family of Dr Sam. Truly a great man and dentist. He will be missed. 
Becky Enns
Bonnie Byrd

It was truly a pleasure having Sam as my Dentist. What a wonderful man. Sending my condolences to his family. Clayton I am very sorry for your loss. Hugs. Jonna Privett

Bert Funatsu.                                                                      05/02/2025.                                          classmate                                                                                                                                                My heartfelt condolences to Sam's family & office staff.                                       Sadly learned today of Sam's passing.  He was one of the folks that pushed & pulled me through USC Dental School.                                                   Remembered the Junior year first semester exam week.  Fourteen two hour exams in five days.   I couldn't take off to study during the day because I was assigned to oral surgery clinic for two weeks prior to exams.  Warned to show up at clinic or else.  Had to cram on weekend prior to exams & the week.  Sam kept me awake the entire nites & grilled me with his notes.  unbelievably I passed.  Sam was always there  to help.   When the time comes, may need Sam's help to get through the pearly gate.  THANKS,SAM!!!

We Just heard the sad & shocking news about Dr. Sam. He was our dentist for sixty years & what a great one he was. He was also our neighbor for many  years. It's hard to comprehend that he's gone. We'll miss him so much. Our condolences to his family & all the office staff. How sad for everyone. He will forever be in our thoughts.

Stan Busch:
I have known Sam since we were about 12 or 13 years old.  My family lived near the Kodamas on Dower Ave.  We both attended Pershing Elementary School, which was just a bicycle ride away.  We were in the same grade.  There were only eight kids in our eighth-grade graduation class.  Sam was always very quiet as a kid.  We took different paths through Central High School, but we did have a couple of classes together.  He was very quiet in high school also!
Stan and Nancy:
Sam became our dentist when the ink was hardly dry on his DDS license.  I think it was in the mid 1960s. We were one of his first patients. He was always happy to see us, and we always had great conversations.  His children and ours are about the same age and later the grandchildren are now in the same stages of life.  It was such a pleasure to go to that office.  Everyone knew us really well as they had been there forever! It is a testament to a good employer when his employees stay with him for decades.  Even when we came in to see Clayton or the hygienist, he always stopped in to say hello and continue our conversations.  He had a great sense of humor and a ready laugh. 
I am sure he spent more than a few Saturdays and Sundays taking care of emergencies when he could have been golfing, fishing or relaxing at home.  That was the case with our family on more than one occasion.  When you have a miserable kid with a toothache, you are forever grateful to the man who fixed it! 
Except for Clayton recently, Sam was the only dentist we had in our adult lives.  We will miss him terribly.

We couldn’t agree more with the tributes written about Dr. Sam.  He was kind, upbeat, knowledgeable, caring & always made you feel at ease in the ‘chair’ even if facing pain.  You wouldn’t even know when he inserted the needle to administer the lidocaine. Most important, he taught & modeled to his team how best to treat/care for patients, family, friends.  When you arrive at the pearly gates, give a hug to Uncle Eddy G for us.

Dr Sam! It’s truly sad to hear the news of his passing. He was absolutely the best and kindest Dentist! It was a joy to see him and give him a bad time every time I came in just to see him laugh! I will miss him so much! There will never be another Dr Sam!!! Rest in peace Doc … you deserve it💙 praying for all the family and his staff …Love you all!

I have worked for Dr Sam and Dr Clayton for 29 years as a dental hygienist and I can truly say I have never met finer dentists.   Dr Sam was a perfectionist in his work and always made sure a patient was comfortable when he was working on them. He truly cared for his patients and had so much patience and empathy for them. My deepest condolences for his family.

OBITUARY

Sam Isamu Kodama

October 26, 1938 – April 16, 2025

Lisle Funeral Home

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