Tsutomu Hirayama Obituary

TSUTOMU HIRAYAMA Tsutomu "Bud" Hirayama passed away on December 1, 2024. The seventh of ten children, he was born on Sep 9, 1928 in Kamuela (Waimea), Hawaii to Mitsuru and Mitsuno (nee Shikamoto) Hirayama, immigrants from Kanon and Jigozen villages in Hiroshima, Japan. He grew up on his parents' farm, graduated high school in 1946, then attended Honolulu Vocational School to become a radio technician. At a 1951 Christmas party, Bud met Miyoko "Mimi" Kato through a mutual friend of Bud's older sister Miyuki. They married on June 13, 1953 and began a long and wide ranging life together for 66 years. They initially moved to his parents' farm in Kamuela so that Bud could try his hand at farming, but eventually they returned to Honolulu after a year, where Bud enlisted in the Army in Nov 1954. After completing his two year enlistment, they moved to San Francisco in Jan 1957 where he used his GI benefits to attend Golden Gate College and majored in accounting. Upon graduation, he landed an army auditor position with the federal government, after which he and Mimi started their family of three (daughter Lisa, sons David and Colin). In his auditor position, Bud traveled around the Far East for six years auditing army installations. To see the world, Bud requested and received a transfer to Kaiserslautern, West Germany in Aug 1968 to audit army installations in Europe. During a three year period, the family explored western Europe, Scandinavia and even West Berlin. The family returned to the U.S. via Bud's job transfer to Atlanta, GA in 1971, where the family spent the next six years traveling the east coast during vacations. In Aug 1977, Bud transferred to Anaheim, CA to work for the Defense Department Inspector General's office in Los Angeles. He retired in Dec 1987 and returned to his true love of farming as a second career. He farmed in Riverside, CA and sold the produce at various farmers markets every week until 2005. Bud lived in Anaheim for 47 years until he passed away at age 96 of natural causes on Dec 1, 2024, eight days after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage. He is survived by his three children, Lisa (Larry), David (Sue), Colin, and grandchildren Linnea and Liam, sisters Miyuki, Kikue and Haruko, and brother Hitoshi. He has been interred with his beloved predeceased wife Mimi at the Hawaii State Veteran's Cemetery in Kaneohe, Oahu, HI.