I have many fond memories of Grandma. One that stands out in my mind is when she and Aunt Jean taught me how to knit. When I made a mistake Grandma would always know how to fix it. She loved to share her knowledge with others whether it was cooking the eggs for sushi or learning how to write my name in Japanese. Thank you for all that you have taught me Grandma.

Love,
Lillian


"Remembering the joy, the laughter, the smiles."

This is really Haruko-san in my heart.

Haruko-san was direct, straightforward, and strong in her thoughts and opinions.

春小さんは「絶対に」そんなこと言わない、キッパリと「絶対に」とよく言っていましたね。(Haruko-san was unwavering.)

Haruko-san loved Japanese foods, sweets, and other items. She so proudly said "That's how Jean-ko is," showing me a small rabbit (one of many souvenir gifts from Jean).

春小さんが、ニコニコして「美味しいね、上手ね」と言ってくれてよく笑って楽しい時間、思い出が沢山あります。(I also have many fond memories of Haruko-san complementing my cooking, smiling, and having a joyful time.)

Haruko-san loved Allen-san and had a happy second marriage.

だから、いつも私に早くいい人見つけて、会わせて、が口癖でした。(Therefore, she always asked me to quickly find a nice boyfriend and bring him to meet her.)  お友達と思ってくれていましたからいろいろお話してくれて有り難かったです。(Because she thought of me as her friend, she told me many stories, for which I am very grateful.)

Haruko-san was always active and independent.

最後までご自分でしようと体を動かしておられました。(Until the end, she tried to do everything by herself.)  立派な日本人女性だと尊敬し誇りに思っています。(She was such a very fine Japanese woman that I respected and was proud of her.)

Haruko-san、we’ll see you in the other world.

Many many blessings,
Love,
Kiku


One of my fondest memories of visiting Grandma throughout my childhood was the way she celebrated and embraced her family with food. I vividly remember showing up to her Redding home and having a table full of sushi ingredients. It always felt like such a special experience for me and I believe it drove my love for the best quality sushi and Asian food. I feel so lucky to have been able to learn some traditional recipes from her as an adult and those will be recipes I can cherish for the rest of my life and hopefully pass on someday.

Tara


To my beloved wife, Judy,

We have had so many wonderful years and I have so many memories of our time together.  

We met through a singles club and liked each other real quick. I talked her into taking skiing lessons and she got to where she could ski real well.  

We made many trips together. Our trip to Germany was my first plane ride. We went to Japan probably three times. We flew to DC to visit Jean and Jerry and to Florida to visit Pat and his family.  

We went to casinos almost every month.  We would drive in my car or truck, rain or shine or snow. What ever the weather, we went anyway. Judy was a real good sport about it.  

She had a big love for two-story houses and I built two two-story houses for her, 589 Martinque and 816 River Bend. She really loved 816 until the end.

I loved her so very much and called her “Baby.” When I see her picture now, I say “Hi Baby.” And I believe that God made her just for me. I’m thankful that she loved me so much that she agreed to marry me thirty-one years ago.

It is still hard to believe that she is really gone. I still see her in her pink walker (which I called her “horse”). Her passing was so sudden and unexpected. But she will always be my Baby. And one of these days, I’ll join her and we’ll be together for ever.

With all my love,
Allen 


Grandma Burke,

Thank you for giving me your strong-willed nature and love of Japanese food. I will always remember when you taught me how to count to 10 in Japanese as a little girl (and I still remember how!). I wish we could have spent more time together, and I’m sorry for that. 

With love, your granddaughter Shannon


I have two vivid memories of my time with Grandma that I want to share.

First is a fairly old one but it sticks out in my mind because it was so unexpected at the time. We were eating at an A&W and I had ordered chili cheese fries with my meal. She wanted to try one of them, and ended up liking them so much that she would go on to eat half of the container on her own. It was such a funny moment seeing my grandmother, who I rarely see eat anything other than Japanese cooking, thoroughly enjoy a fast food offering that she would end up taking a decent portion for herself.

My second memory also relates to food, which I believe shows just how important eating was to her and how that ended up being passed down to all of us. We were at her house in Gilroy and she was showing us as a family how to prepare rolls of sushi. I had never done it before and it was a tricky task to pick up at first, but she was patient and helpful and before long we were all enjoying our own handmade sushi rolls. More than anything else, I think this demonstrates her commitment to both her family and her heritage, as she was so happy that her grandchildren learned how to make sushi together. I will always hold this memory dear, as it would end up being one of the last bonding moments that we would share as a family.

Ryan


My most favorite memories of Grandma will always be cooking with her! She had a passion for sharing and cooking Japanese food with us; she made sure we never went without. Some of my favorite recipes she shared with me include Gyoza, Tonkatsu, and Yakimeshi with leftover Honey Baked Ham. I'm so glad she helped instill a love of cooking in me, and I will forever hold near and dear to my heart.

Casey


I’m very grateful for my Grandmother for my Japanese heritage and making sure I knew how important it was to embrace my culture. Ever time I have miso soup, maguro sashimi or drink sake, I’ll think of her. I was also lucky to be her first grandchild and she always made me feel extra special for it. I’ll miss her but am proud of her remarkable life and journey, and everyone she impacted.

Kyle


I have three vivid memories of Mom, and they still resonate in my life.  

The first is friendship.  Mom filled her time talking and laughing and playing bingo and cards with friends.  We could see she valued those moments, and how important they were to her.  I share her value of friendship.  A fond memory I have with my good friend Mike is playing her 33 rpm Japanese records at 45 rpm while singing and laughing hysterically and trying not to get caught.  We still look back and laugh at those moments today. 

The second was her love of hobbies.  Mom took up sewing and knitting and I recall sewed several dresses for Jean for high school occasions.  She also repaired many of the jeans I wore holes in with decorative patches.  Mom filled her spare time with pottery and cake decorating, many of her figurines and planters are shared among family.  Mom beautifully decorated our cakes and enjoyed letting us practice her decorating techniques.  I remember paying a big price for learning to create an icing rose on my palm, and after several attempts (eating each result), spent that night heaving my guts out… and have not enjoyed butter cream since!

And lastly was her love for us.  Mom always celebrated our moments of accomplishments with such pride, it was as if her goal in life was to applaud and remind us of how proud she was.  She never missed an opportunity to introduce me to a friend or stranger as her Son, you could sense her pride when she said, “and this is my Son”.  However, I was extremely embarrassed when I was young as the word Kyoot (pronounced “Kawaii”) which means cute, worked its way into introductions and I could pick it out, always thinking “I don’t like being referred to as cute”.  

Her love for us really hit home as we went through her things and found she kept, as mementos, every card we sent, every gift we gave her, and every note we wrote her.  This will always keep me smiling through tears…

Pat


One of the central themes of get togethers between Mom, family and friends was food, especially Japanese food. Throughout our lives she was always happy to teach us (including her grandchildren) how to make things like inari sushi, maki sushi, takoyaki and sukiyaki. She was very particular about how to season and cool sushi rice.

We had a standing debate about who made the best sukiyaki until one time when we held a cook-off with family as the judge. I was judged the winner but I think she believed, to her grave, that she made the better sukiyaki that day.

In high school, before my games she would often prepare a simple Japanese meal with rice and some pickled vegetables to give me energy. The routine helped me relax and became an essential part of my pre-game preparation.

As the years went by, I always enjoyed teasing her about little things to make her laugh. I will always remember those small, intimate moments when she would laugh at something silly.

Bill


Mom, I will always be grateful for your unconditional love and your unwavering belief in me. I will remember forever how, during one of our many trips to Japan, you fiercely told off the Japanese taxi driver who called me stupid. And I knew that I could always rely on your help, from school projects and sewing high school prom dresses to packing up my house in Potomac, Maryland, and then unpacking in both our DC apartment and home in Los Altos.  

I will always appreciate your joy in the everyday things in life, from an outstanding Japanese meal (even one purchased at a train station in Osaka) to always listening to music. And how you had to be surrounded by cute things, especially your huge collection of stuffed animals, a number of which now reside at my house.  

And I will always benefit from your focus on creating and treasuring memories of family and friends. The care with which you made over two dozen photo album and noted the giver and date of every gift, as well as the discovery that you kept practically every item from all of us, is a testament to the importance of these relationships. They are also overwhelming proof of the love you had for all of us.

I will remember you with love, always.

Jean


OBITUARY

Haruko Judy Moore

June 22, 1927 – January 5, 2021

Willow Glen Funeral Home

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