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Marion Konishi Takehara passed away peacefully at the age of 97 on February 4, 2023 at a personal care home in Katy, TX where she resided for the past 2.5 years.

Marion Tsuruko Konishi was born on May 7, 1925 in Los Angeles, CA to first generation Japanese immigrants Tanigoro Konishi and Tokuko Eiki from Fukushima, Japan.

As a 16 year old American citizen, Marion and her family (along with 120,000 other Japanese Americans) were uprooted from their West Coast community following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. After initially being confined to horse stalls at the Santa Anita Race Track, she and her family were relocated to Camp Amache–one of 10 internment camps built in desolate parts of the U.S. There, Marion was named Amache Senior High School's valedictorian and delivered a commencement speech at the school's inaugural graduation ceremony. Despite being an incarcerated teenager, her speech provided a sense of hope. Her words were so inspiring that the speech was read on the Senate floor 73 years later and is now recorded in the Congressional Records of the National Archives.

A full scholarship from the Methodist Church allowed her to leave Amache to attend Simpson College in Iowa. At Simpson, Marion met the love of her life, Ken Takehara. After volumes of love letters were exchanged, they were married in 1947 and moved to Johnstown, PA where they raised three children. They moved to Cumberland, Maryland in 1966, and she received her Master of Education degree from Frostburg State College. In 1976, Marion and Ken moved to a golf course community in Houston, TX to live out the rest of their lives together.

Marion continued her teaching career in Spring Branch Independent School District at Terrace Elementary, and in Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District at Owens Elementary and Lieder Elementary. Outside of the classroom she enjoyed hosting family dinners on Sunday evenings and helping grandkids with homework. She was a dog lover, a golfer and a bridge player, and she was a regular at exercise classes into her 90's.

As a lifelong teacher, Marion dedicated time late in life to talking publicly about the multi-generational effects of World War II on her family. She will always be remembered for her strength and positivity–inspiring others to treat everyone respectfully and equally. Her beautiful smile and faith through adversity will serve as inspiration for generations to come.

Marion was preceded in death by her husband of 67 years, Kenneth Nobuaki Takehara, and her beloved dogs Pepsi, Poco, Bojangles, Donner, and Mateo.

She is survived by three children: Anne Takehara Wilson (married to Butch, living in Houston), John Takehara (married to Renee, living in Prescott, Arizona), Amy Takehara Lilly (married to Jim, living in San Antonio, TX); four grandchildren, Meredith Wilson Montgomery (married to Josh Montgomery, living in Nashville, TN), Michael Wilson (partner Patrick Bravo, living in Akron, OH), Devon Lilly (married to Elizabeth Hilton Lilly, living in Austin, TX) and Trevor Lilly (living in Houston, TX) plus three great grandchildren Aiden McClaine, Mays Montgomery and Thatcher Montgomery; and her brother, James Konishi and his wife Rose living in Cleveland, OH.

The family wishes to acknowledge and thank Claudia and Sam Summers and their loving staff at The Preserve along with the team from Blue Star Hospice for providing extraordinary care and attention for the last three years.

In lieu of flowers, it was Marion's request that donations be made to support the Amache Preservation Society. More than 7,000 people were incarcerated at Amache from 1942 to 1945. In 2022, Amache was designated a National Historic Site by the U.S. Department of Interior. Please send your donations to: Amache Preservation Society, P.O, Box 259, Granada, CO  81041 or online at amache.org.

A memorial service will be held at St. Philip Presbyterian Church, 4807 San Felipe, Houston, TX 77056, on Saturday, March 18 at 2 p.m. (CST) with a reception following. The service will also be live streamed and archived for future viewing ( http://www.saintphilip.net/ ). A private inurnment will be held at the Houston National Cemetery.