Mary Yoshiye Sayama

BOUNTIFUL, UT - Mary Yoshiye Sayama, 97, long time resident of Elwood, UT and recent resident of Bountiful, North Salt Lake, and Layton, UT, passed away peacefully in Bountiful, UT, from complications due to a duodenal perforation.

Mary was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, auntie, and friend. She was a quiet person but truly enjoyed being with family and friends. She was always hardworking and together with her husband, Kazuo, enjoyed raising their family on their farm in Elwood.

Mary was born on November 22, 1925 in Fresno, CA to Kazuo Kishimoto and Izumi (Tomoshige) Kishimoto. She was the first of four children. She married Kazuo Sayama on August 6, 1948 at the Ogden Buddhist Church in Ogden, UT.

As a young child, she grew up and lived in farming country near Fresno, CA. At the age of 8 (summer 1934), her parents brought her, her brothers Tom & Dick, and her baby sister Patty to live in Japan while the parents returned to America to work and earn money. She and her siblings lived in Japan with their grandma and uncle for four years before returning to America.

In 1941, the U.S. entered World War II after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive order 9066 which authorized the forced removal of Japanese citizens living in west coast states to relocation centers further inland. As a result, her family along with over 10,000 Japanese Americans were uprooted and sent to the Gila River Relocation Center located within the Gila River Indian Reservation in Arizona. They could take very little of their belongings with them, essentially one suitcase per person, and had to leave most of their belongings behind. Life in camp was difficult and cramped, her family of 6 lived in a single room in the barracks during their time in camp. In March 1945, her father, who had chronic stomach problems, passed away at the young age of 43 while still in camp.

When the war ended in 1945, instead of returning to California, her family moved to Utah at the suggestion of a distant family relative. The whole family worked hard as farm laborers and had to adjust to snow and cold winters which they were not accustomed to. Mary attended and got her diploma from Davis High School and worked various jobs when not in school or not doing farm work.

In January 1948, through a baishukunin, she met Kazuo Sayama of Brigham City, UT. It didn't take long for them to realize they were meant for each other. They were engaged a few months later and married in August 1948. Together they started a family and worked on the Sayama brothers farm until they bought a farm of their own in Elwood, UT in 1956. They raised four children and taught them the importance of family, work ethic, and education.

She and her family were members of the Honeyville Buddhist Church and actively participated in many church related activities. Her husband Kazuo was president of the church between 1966-1969.

When her husband passed away in 1995, she lived with her daughters for several months until she was ready to return to her home in Elwood where she lived by herself until 2014 (age 88). From 2014 on she rotated living with her daughters in Utah and son in San Jose, CA.

Besides family, her other passions included gardening, arts and crafts (in particular Japanese Bunka embroidery and crocheting), watching Japan TV, listening to traditional Japanese music, vacationing, reading, and cooking. Her Bunka embroidery was award winning, always getting blue ribbons at the Box Elder County Fair and often receiving the big purple "sweepstakes" ribbons.

Surviving are her children, Fred (Janet), San Jose, CA; Julia (Dave) Nagata, Bountiful, UT; Elaine (Stan) Endo, North Salt Lake, UT; and Lillian (Clark) Stenquist, Layton, UT; 11 grandchildren; 6 great grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. Also surviving is one brother Tom (Eiko) Kishimoto, San Diego, CA.  She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Kazuo Sayama in 1995; brother Dick (Kiyomi) Kishimoto in 2007; and sister Patty Kishimoto in 2015.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, July 8, 2023 at 10:00 am at the Honeyville Buddhist Temple (3945 W 6900 N, Honeyville, UT 84314) with Reverend Jerry Hirano officiating. Interment will be at the Brigham City Cemetery (300 E 300 S, Brigham City, UT). The service will be livestreamed and may be accessed below.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Honeyville Buddhist Temple, PO Box 220, Honeyville UT 84314.

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT PAN THE CROWD AND THE CAMERA IS FIXED UPON THE PULPIT. WE WILL TRY AND LIVESTREAM THE FUNERAL SERVICE. IF WE ARE UNABLE TO DO SO, DUE TO THE INTERNET SERVICE AT THE CHURCH, A RECORDING WILL BE UPLOADED WITHIN 24-48 HOURS AFTER THE SERVICE.