October 2001

He has too much on his plate

In the September Verbal Chalice Fred Boyer remembered Randy Williams. Randy brought Kinzo Yamamoto into our Fellowship. He was the speaker at a Lion’s Club meeting and his speaking of his past aroused Randy’s interest. Randy invited Kinzo to speak at our Fellowship, then located on Carmel Drive in Ft. Walton Beach.

Kinzo, a Ph.D. sociologist, found a welcoming home. During WWlI Kinzo’s Japanese-American family, living in California along with similar Americans, was rounded up, displaced and relocated in a western desert area camp surrounded by barbed wire and armed guards. This act constituted a severe blemish on the part of our government acting out of fear caused by the debacle of Pearl Harbor.

Kinzo’s father, a wise man, told his young sons to hold no anger blaming it on a young America still becoming. Kinzo’s retelling of this episode brought him to the Fellowship.

Kinzo and I worked together on the Finance Committee and the Board. In the good o1′ days most of our meetings were held on Sunday morning before church services. Kinzo and I would ride together discussing either finance or other items. As chairman of the Finance Committee he put together an excellent perspective on our Fellowship which he presented to three banks in an effort to secure a loan or to change our loan. First National Bank accepted our request and Kinzo negotiated the loan.

Then there was Kinzo, the craftsman. When we bought our present building he brought all his wood working tools to the church, set them up in the now Piper Room and with Sy Shwiller, completely redid our kitchen, raising and repairing shelves and cabinets. He raised the podium we now use so that our taller speakers didn’t look so awkward bending over it. Kinzo said it was a temporary fix, which he would upgrade later on. We lost him before this could be done. He bought a fancy knife-sharpening machine and sharpened the knives of practically every member. Fran is still impressed at how those knives remain so sharp.

And there was Kinzo, the gourmet. Being invited to his and Jan’s home for a meal was a heavenly treat. Everything was supreme and particularly remembered his fried shrimp.

One of the prizes for doing something for the Fellowship was a Kinzo-prepared Japanese meal. Jan graciously surrendered her kitchen at these times.

Kinzo was also a gardener. Camellias, monkey grass and whatever else found its way from my garden to his. He took camellia plants that had not survived my grafting and returned them back to become beautiful bushes.

His father, after incarceration, moved to Pennsylvania and became a successful truck farmer, developing several varieties of tomatoes.

Living in Destin and being a craftsman, it was only natural that he become one of the foremost experts in turning an ordinary fishing rod into a thing of exquisite beauty with very intricate thread wrapping. A fisherman also who spent many hours with Kinzo was Bill Bryant looking for and landing the big ones.

Of all his virtues the one most remembered was his human kindness. Never saying an unkind word about anyone, his favorite saying was “He has too much on his plate”.

Good health was unfortunately not to be for him. His stocky body became a constant source of pain and did not respond to treatment. He began to wear braces and the “Godzilla” pills did not help. His breathing at night while asleep had to be reinforced with an air pump. His spirit and humor prevailed.

Then one day the terrible phone call, “Hank, you have lost your friend.”

We planted a Japanese maple tree in the Fellowship yard to honor him. The tree fought an almost losing battle with the lack of rain but now is watered by our new sprinkler system.

Many people pass through our lives but only a few remain with us forever. My friend, Kinzo, was such a person. On the marker by his tree are the words, “Kinzo Yamamoto, A Man for All Seasons”.

Hank Boudolf