Shigeno Okamoto Memorial Fund

Shigeno Okamoto of Great Neck, NY passed away peacefully on November 4th, surrounded by her family. As the daughter of Seiichiro and Naka Ohfuchi in the small village of Kotaka in Niigata, Japan, she met and married Hiroharu Okamoto from Wakayama, Japan in 1962. The couple immigrated to the US along with their three sons in 1973, embarking on an exciting new life and journey. Shigeno was the backbone of the family's new life in New York, raising three sons, supporting her husband, and contributing to her new community at large. She served as a teacher in a leadership position at Sogetsu, a renowned school of Japanese flower arrangement with branches in the US. As the chairperson for the Sakura Chorus over many years, she led numerous performances in her hometown, often at the Great Neck Library. She was also an active member of the Nichibei Fujinkai (Japanese - American Women's Association) in New York, bridging the two cultures together and being a beloved and trusted friend to many in the broader community. She was a caring wife to Hiroharu Okamoto, a devoted mother to sons, Akira, Kiyoshi and Hiroshi, and daughters-in-law Akiyo, Akiko, and Amanda, and a loving and doting grandmother to Chigusa, Mina, Beni, and Marika. She will be deeply missed by everyone who had the fortune of knowing this remarkable, caring, and kind person.

Memorial services will be held on Saturday, November 11th, 2023, from 2:30pm – 5:00pm at the New York Buddhist Church, 332 Riverside Dr., New York, NY 10025.

In lieu of okoden offerings or flowers, the family is collecting donations in Shigeno Okamoto's name to gift to the Great Neck Library, an institution she cherished and helped support, where she led many memorable performances as chairperson for the Sakura Women's Chorus.