Yoneko Asano Keith's Obituary
Yoneko (also referred as “Patsy”) was born June 15th, 1927 in Sendai, Japan and passed away on November 1st, 2009 in Plano, TX. She was 82 years old. She was preceded in death by her parents, Matsujiro and Misaho Asano; 6 brothers and 3 sisters. There are currently 20 surviving siblings from the Asano family. She is survived by her husband, Walter T. Keith; sons, Steve Fox and wife Chiyo of Japan, Eddy Fox of Plano, David Fox and soulmate Nazi of Grand Prairie, and Leo Fox, Jr. and wife Leslie of Plano; Yoneko has 8 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren. During her youth, Yoneko’s family ran a sake store selling sake, miso, shoyu and canned foods. Yoneko’s family received a special award from the government (Kouseidaijin) for having 10 children during the war, which she once spoke about on NHK radio. She graduated from Tokiwani Gakuen High School, where she was considered a “leader-type” and held fond memories being in charge of a student parade. She was born with a gift of expressing beauty through painting, floral arrangements and fashion. During her youth, she was once a beauty pageant queen in her local town. As a child, she always liked the English language, in which she later worked at the Sendai US Armed Forces Officers Club at Kawauchi as a translator. This is where she met her first husband Mr. Leo Fox. She told interesting stories about their dating days right after WW II, including stories about how they met secretly to avoid public concern based on cultural differences. However their dedication paid off, in which her parents finally accepted him into the family, and they were married soon after. During their newlywed years, they traveled abroad to various places, including the states. This is when she became enamored by the American culture as well as the language. They continued living in the Tokyo area, where her husband ran an insurance business and Yoneko became a housewife raising their 4 sons. After they had their second child, the family moved to Hawaii, had their 3rd child, moved back to Japan where they had their 4th. She always expressed very fond memories during her years in Hawaii. As a housewife, she kept busy being involved in her kid’s school events, traveling with her husband, and maintaining a loving home-life for the family. In 1968, her husband unfortunately died from cancer in Japan, and Yoneko’s life turned a new chapter as a single mother. In the interest of her children’s future education, and providing them with the same opportunity to experience the American culture, Yoneko made a difficult decision, and she courageously moved her family from Japan to Richardson, Texas in 1971. Her late husband’s extended family (the Shirleys) graciously accepted the family to stay with them until she found a 2-bedroom apartment for her family. She learned how to drive, bought a car and worked her first job during night shift at Texas Instruments. She began socially networking with other local Japanese people, and landed a job working at Murata Pearl in North Park Mall. During this time, she attended a Baptist church with her sister-in-law, where she became friends with Japanese-cultured families – particularly the Castell family. Her Christian faith grew, and she eventually accepted the Lord and was baptized along with two of her sons. As Yoneko continued to see and appreciate the loving beauty within the Christian faith, her spirit kept leading her to new higher grounds. In 1972, she bought a house in Garland, Texas and landed a job at Wolfe Nursery. This is when she discovered her incredible God-given talent in floral design. For the next 25 years at Wolfe Nursery, she was regarded as one of the top floral designers in the metroplex. Her signature work was arranging Christmas tree displays at various retail stores each year. As a hobby, she began taking lessons in oil painting. In 1978, she met Mr. Orville Failing who also worked at Wolfe Nursery as a district manager. They eventually married and both continued to work at Wolfe Nursery. Yoneko achieved her certification as a “Texas Certified Nurseryman”, and was a member of the Texas Association of Nurserymen, American Association of Nurserymen and Southern Nurserymen’s Association. One year during the 80’s, she was once asked to give a speech to the Garland VFW Chapter on Pearl Harbor Day. She courageously talked about her personal experience during the war as a child, and received a standing ovation – it was one of her proudest moments. In 1995, she retired from the nursery occupation and enjoyed spending time with her growing family, her involvement at Northlake Baptist Church, and playing “Majan” with her Japanese friends. In 1998, she lost her husband Orville from cancer. Being single again, Yoneko continued her beautiful journey in growing her faith in the Lord, and was fortunate to make several trips back to Japan and Hawaii to visit with family and friends. She always expressed a special loving heart towards all of her grandchildren and great grandchildren. In 2006, through a friend she was introduced to Walter Keith, and was instantly taken by his loving personality. Yoneko always had the special ability to see love and beauty in life, and she felt such convictions in Walter irrespective of age. It was a special time in her life to know and understand that love and beauty never ages, but through the Lord it lives within all of us forever. As a beloved wife, mother and friend, Yoneko will be dearly missed by all of us; however as we all remember her unselfish expression of love and the ability to see beauty in life – that will always stay with us and be a constant reminder that she is with our Father and will be in our hearts forever. She is survived by her husband, Walter T. Keith; sons, Steve Fox and wife Chiyo of Japan, Eddy Fox of Plano, David Fox and soulmate Nazi Mehrooz of Grand Prairie, and Leo Fox, Jr. and wife Leslie of Plano; 8 grandchildren; 4 great grandchildren; and her husband Walter’s family.
What’s your fondest memory of Yoneko?
What’s a lesson you learned from Yoneko?
Share a story where Yoneko's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Yoneko you’ll never forget.
How did Yoneko make you smile?