BIOGRAPHY

Yoshiko Miwa was born into a Japanese family in Guadalupe, California, United States, on 28 February 1914. She was the fifth among seven children born to Umekichi Tanaka and Masu Ohama. She had two brothers and five sisters. Her father worked as a farmer and blacksmith, making harnesses and horseshoes. On their farm, they had many animals, including chickens, pigs, cows, and horses. Her mother and infant brother passed away from the Spanish Flu on 26 January 1919. Subsequently, her father placed her and her four sisters in the Guadalupe Children’s Home, where she remained until completing Santa Maria High School in 1932. Her father was the first president of the Guadalupe Buddhist Church from 1914-1939.

During the late 1920s, Miwa served as a Dharma School teacher at the Guadalupe Buddhist Church. In 1928, she met Henry Miwa, her future husband, when he visited the church. She pursued higher education at the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated with a degree in business administration in 1936. Despite her qualifications, she struggled to find work in the business sector and ended up working as a company bookkeeper for a relative’s wholesale produce business. She got married at the Fresno Buddhist Church in 1939.

Between 1934 and 1942, her husband worked as the executive secretary of the Fresno church, where he oversaw general financial management. He also supervised the Sunday school and served as a substitute teacher at the Japanese school. On 6 May 1942, she and her siblings were picked up, assigned a family number, and taken to the Santa Fe Railway Station. From there, they were transported by train to Parker, Arizona. Afterward, they were taken by bus to Poston (Camp 1) in Arizona. She, her family, and relatives were released from the camp in September 1945.

Following the war, the family settled in Hawthorne, California. After the war, the couple co-established a nursery called the Prairie Nursery, which they later sold in 1963. The couple had three sons: Masao, Gerald, and Alan.

At the age of 45, she pursued a Licensed Vocational Nursing license and attended the California Vocational Nursing School in Los Angeles. She secured a job at the Veterans Administration Hospital in the same city. In 1968, she accepted a position at Memorial Hospital of Gardena, where she worked until her retirement in 1984.

Her husband passed away in 1996, at the age of 90. Miwa continued driving at the age of 100 and is fluent in three languages: English, Spanish, and Japanese. At the age of 110, she had 10 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild.

RECOGNITION

Her age was verified by Fabrizio Villatoro, and validated on 27 July 2024.

ATTRIBUTION

* “Torrance Woman Celebrates 109th Birthday” – Rafu Shimpo, 11 March 2023

* “Honoring Yoshiko Miwa, a BCA Supercentenarian” – Buddhist Churches Of America, 7 April 2024

GALLERY