Obituary of Joyce Tomiko Tominaga

On the afternoon of July 2, 2020, Joyce Tomiko Tominaga of Tucson, AZ passed away at the age of 70.  Joyce was born to Gunichi and Shizuyo Matsumoto in 1950. In May 1972, she married Wayne Tominaga and together raised three children, Akiko, Derek and Richard.

An educator at heart, she began her career as a Physical Education teacher, and even returned to teach at the high school she attended. She taught arts and crafts with recycled materials, helped students find career paths they were passionate about, worked with refugee families and retired as a student mentor.

Quiet in her fight with ALS, after being diagnosed in 2013, she was surrounded by family and friends while living life to its fullest. A positive outlook on everything, her disease did not slow down her mind. Once confined to her chair, she continued to nurture relationships old and new and experience the world through their eyes.

Joyce is preceded in death by her father, Gunichi, and her mother, Shizuyo.  She is survived by her husband, Wayne, her children, Akiko, Derek and Richard, her two grandchildren, Hobie and Reese, and her siblings, Ken, Fred, Larry, Jane, Mary and Betty.