In March, Teruko Ono celebrated her 100th birthday at ACC with her mahjong friends. Born on March 9, 1923, in the city of Kyoto, Japan, Teruko grew up in a nice house with her parents, sister, and brother. She was the oldest of the three children. Her father, Kinoshuke Yamanaka, owned a lumber company. When World War II broke out, he sold his inventory and built rental homes.
Teruko met her future husband, Akira Ono, when he was a student at Kyoto University and she was a student at the Singer Sewing School, training to become a seamstress. Akira played the violin in the Kyoto University Symphony. One day, Teruko and a friend went to see one of the University Symphony concerts. After the performance, Akira and his orchestra friends met them in the audience and invited them to coffee.
Teruko and Akira got married in 1946. These were tumultuous years in post-war Japan. While Akira worked as a government interpreter, Teruko stayed home to raise their kids. In 1950, Akira became a Buddhist minister. For Teruko, becoming a minister’s wife marked the beginning of a life of public service and doing things for others quietly behind the scenes.
Her daughter, Junko Egi, recalls Teruko’s kindness and attentiveness throughout her childhood. “She made all of my clothes, and they were beautiful. I took piano lessons, and my mom would always listen to me play. Before each recital, she sewed me a new outfit.”
Junko also recalls a day in kindergarten when her teacher asked her to draw a sun. “I had no idea what to do, so mom took me outside and very patiently showed me how by first drawing a circle. I will never forget that day.”
Teruko was not only gifted in drawing but also in pastel painting, knitting, and crocheting. She loved Japanese food and was an excellent cook. With her formal training in dressmaking, she made dresses and kimonos for her family and friends. For ten years, she also studied the Japanese tea ceremony and taught it in Portland, Oregon, years later. Junko says her mom is very organized and proper, traits that she probably picked up from her training in the tea ceremony, which was performed for noble people and the Emperor of Japan.
In 1956, Akira was assigned a ministerial position in Fresno, and the family immigrated to the U.S. Because of his multiple assignments, they moved around a lot. Next, it was Odgen, Utah, then Lodi, Monterey, and Portland. By then, Teruko had taken up teaching the tea ceremony, opening up a school to teach this ceremonial art form. She had more than 30 students.
Teruko says that being 100 years old “feels like a dream.” She attributes her long life to what she eats, which is mostly fish, chicken, and rice. She has also stayed mentally and socially active by playing mahjong at ACC three days a week. Junko is always by her side.
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