Martin Mitsuyuki Matsudaira (1937 - 2019)

Born 12 Nov 1937 in Seattle, King, Washington, United States

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 24 Mar 2019 at age 81 in Seattle, King, Washington, United States

Biography

Martin Matsudaira is Notable.

Martin Mitsuyuki Matsudaira was born in Seattle, Washington on 12 November 1937, one of the 14 children of Thomas Tokuhisa Matsudaira and Theresa Hotoru Umeda. As a Nisei Japanese American, his Japanese name was Matsudaira Mitsuyuki (松平 光行). He was affectionately called "Mich," which was also occasionally spelled "Mitch". In 1940, he was living with his family in Seattle according to the 1940 United States Census. Mich spent the early years of his life incarcerated with his family at Puyallup Assembly Center and then at Minidoka War Relocation Center during the Pacific War until finally being released from imprisonment in 1945.

After his release from internment, Mich attended the Immaculate Conception Elementary School and O'Dea High School. In 1955, he was still living in Seattle before serving in the United States Air Force as an in-flight Refueling Specialist on tanker aircraft from the aforementioned year to 1960 before getting a job at Boeing.

Martin Matsudaira is a Military Veteran.
Served in the United States Air Force 1955-1960
Served as an in-flight refueling specialist

Mich married in 1962, and had four surviving children before divorcing in 1988 after 26 years of marriage.

Mich received a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Washington in 1965 and a master's degree in public administration from Seattle University in 1977. After obtaining a bachelor's degree, he began working at Boeing.

Mich was the executive director of the Governor’s Asian American Advisory Council from 1972 to 1974. From that time until resigning in 1978, he was also the first executive director of the Washington State Commission on Asian American Affairs. Mich also served as the president of the Seattle chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League in 1979. He served in his position on the National Council for Japanese American Redress afterward.

After working at Boeing as an engineer, Mich opened a shop in Seattle, "Mich's Men Shop", in 1976. One of his children worked at his shop while it was open. It closed down in 1990, and Mich returned to Boeing until he retired in 2003.

During his final years, Mich was hard of hearing, so he wore headphones so that he could listen to the news or Japanese dramas on television. He died in his sleep on 24 March 2019. A funeral mass was celebrated at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Seattle on April 27, and a graveside service was held at Holyrood Catholic Cemetery in Shoreline, WA on 26 March 2021.

Sources

• "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K93H-D4X : accessed 9 May 2018), Martin Matsudaira in household of Tom Matsudaira, Tract K-5, Seattle, Seattle Election Precinct, King, Washington, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 40-186, sheet 10A, line 26, family 223, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 4379.
• "United States Public Records, 1970-2009," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJLH-JPH7 : 16 May 2014), Martin Matsudaira, Residence, Bellevue, Washington, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.
• "United States Public Records, 1970-2009," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJN6-TX6X : 16 May 2014), Martin I Matsudaira, Residence, Bellingham, Washington, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.
• "United States Public Records, 1970-2009," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2M75-88S : 23 May 2014), Mich M Matsudaira, Residence, Seattle, Washington, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.
• "United States Japanese Americans Relocated During World War II, 1942-1946," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KX2J-BH7 : 12 December 2014), Martin M Matsudaira, 1942-1946; citing Minidoku (Gooding), person number 12099I, file 506427, NARA NAID 1263921, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.
• "Washington Divorce Index, 1969-2014," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLC4-42KV : 21 August 2017), Martin Matsudaira and Ruth M Matsudaira, 31 Mar 1988, King, Washington, United States; from " Department of Health, Divorce Index, 1969-2014," database, Washington State Archives - Digital Archives (https://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov : n.d.), citing Washington State Archives, Cheney.

"Martin Mitsuyuki Matsudaira." Columbia Funeral Home. Accessed 4 Apr 2019.

See also:

• Wikipedia: Mich Matsudaira
• Wikidata: Item Q66606212, en:Wikipedia
• Find A Grave: Memorial #228786856