Herbert Gunzo Kawahara passed away at the age of 95 on August 2, 2024, in Corte Madera, Calif.
Born on January 12, 1929, in Los Angeles, to George Jiro and Edith (nee Tsuji) Kawahara, he spent his early years in the Boyle Heights neighborhood before being interned with his family during WWII at the Gila River War Relocation Center in Arizona. After the war, Herbert went on to graduate summa cum laude from UCLA in 1951 and to serve in the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps during the Korean War. In 1958, Herbert joined E.F. Hutton & Co. as an account executive. During the ensuing 30 years, Herbert achieved a long and ground-breaking career, rising through the ranks to become executive vice president and Hutton’s top executive in Southern California, as well as a member of Hutton’s Board of Directors. In 1988, he was named president of the Pacific Stock Exchange.
Following his retirement, Herbert redirected his energies toward supporting his alma mater, UCLA, serving as president and chairman of the UCLA Foundation, among other roles. He particularly championed Japanese American studies, serving as chairman of the Nikkei Bruin Committee, a group of distinguished Japanese American UCLA alumni, and with his late wife, Helen, established The Herbert and Helen Kawahara Fellowship to support UCLA graduate students wishing to develop expertise in Japanese culture. He also authored and published a comprehensive history of his family that subsequently became part of the Oral History Project of UCLA’s Terasaki Foundation for Japanese Studies. Finally, he twice served as president of the Rolling Hills Country Club.
He is survived by his children, Suzanne, Jean (Dean Dunlavey), and Edward “Ted” (Helen) Kawahara; his grandchildren, Alex and Sally Rothman, Brett, Grant and Corinne Dunlavey, and Todd and Jake Kawahara; sister, Evelyn Chikahisa; and a large extended family. He was predeceased by his wife of 57 years, Helen Yano Kawahara; brother, Lindbergh Kawahara; and sister, Eleanor Ozawa. A memorial service will be held on September 15, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. at the Gardena Buddhist Church.