September 17, 1953 – May 31, 2026
John Edward Tokeshi, 72, of Gardena, California, passed away on Sunday, May 31, 2026.
John was loving, kind, generous and good humored. He touched the lives of all he knew as a loving husband, son, brother, uncle, coach, mentor and friend.
Born Sept. 17, 1953, in Chicago to Edward and Yoneko (Izumi). In 1966, his family moved back to California. After graduating from Arcadia High, John attended UCLA (Go Bruins!). He later received his BA from CSU Northridge and teaching credential from CSU Long Beach.
John dedicated thirty years as a physical education teacher at Newcomb Academy and Hughes Middle School in Long Beach, Calif. While at Hughes, he coached boys’ basketball (8 city championships), girls’ basketball (7 city championships) and flag football (2 city championships). The school gymnasium was named after him following his retirement in 2016.
In 2002, he married Gayle Kawahara. They enjoyed traveling together and going to a “bucket list” of live sporting events. John and Gayle also traveled to many church conferences as leaders in the Episcopal Asiamerica Ministry.
He is survived by his wife, Gayle Kawahara; siblings, Don (Fusako), Rich, Dave, Carol and Mary (Senzaki); beloved nieces and nephews; and dog, Jujubee.
A celebration of life will be held on October 3. For more information contact JTCelebrate@outlook.com.