On December 21, 2022, Eiko Fukushima passed away peacefully in her sleep just two months shy of her 92nd birthday. Eiko was born in Hiroshima, Japan and an atomic bomb survivor. In 1956 she emigrated to the United States and settled into the thriving Japanese American community in West Los Angeles. As a young mother, Eiko enjoyed sewing garments for her young children and was later employed first at I. Magnin then later at Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills as a fitter and seamstress. She loved working in the fashion industry and took great pride and joy in her profession, making friends with both her colleagues and clients. Eiko was an active member of the American Society of Hiroshima-Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors (ASA) and an occasional karaoke performer with friends at the Gardena community center. She was enjoying her retirement until her health required caregiving in the early spring of 2021 at which time she moved to Maryland, where she enjoyed a quiet life with her eldest son’s family until her passing.
Eiko was a warm and social person who will be greatly missed by her family and friends. She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe Fukushima, and survived by her three sons: Robert Koda (Mary Beth Kaiser), Edward Koda (Jan Linder-Koda), David Koda; stepdaughters: Sherry Ota, Iris Alvarado (Pat); grandchildren: Matilda, Gregory, Derek; and step-grandson, Danny (Yumie).
The family respectfully requests no koden or condolence gifts.