Mary Noh Obituary

MARY JONG WAN NOH Mary Jong Wan Noh, 87, of Pepe'ekeo, Hawai'i, passed away peacefully at home on April 15, 2024, surrounded by her loving family. She was born to Moon Bae Kim and Inn Yea Choi in Jincheon-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do, South Korea, and educated at Cheongju University. Mary inspired many children as an elementary school teacher before immigrating to the United States in 1963. She met her future husband at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Nu'uanu, Oahu, raised two children, and single-handedly transformed her husband's landscaping business into a beautiful bougainvillea nursery. Nestled in Hawai'i Kai's Kamilonui Valley, Mary's nursery flourished for 37 years. She propagated bougainvillea cuttings, hauled potted plants well into her eighties, and taught her customers how to encourage their plants to bloom. Mary made lifelong friends that way, often inviting them to sit with her, chat, and laugh under the cool shade of her bougainvillea-lined pergola. Mary's customers affectionately knew her as "The Bougainvillea Lady", and her legacy lives on in the thousands of colorful bougainvillea still blooming today at the Ala Moana Shopping Center, Coral Creek Golf Course, along Kahala Avenue, and at her customers' homes throughout Oahu. Mary is predeceased by her husband Jai Jo Noh of Honolulu, brother Roy Chong Min (Karen) Kim of California. She is survived by her son Steven Noh of Idaho; daughter Julia (John, Jr.) Chinen of Pepe'ekeo; brother Chong Man (Hi Bang) Kim and sisters Jane Jong Sook (David) Lee and Susan Jong Shim (Edwin) Lee of Washington State; granddaughters Gianna, Ellia, and Clara; numerous nieces and nephews. Mary's Celebration of Life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 8, 2024, at the Hawai'i Kai Golf Course, 8902 Kalanianaole Highway in Honolulu. Family, friends, loyal nursery clients and customers are all welcome to attend. Casual attire. No flowers, please. Arrangements Provided By: Dodo Mortuary, Inc. *