Frank Kaoru Inami

Frank Kaoru Inami, of Livermore, died March 14. He was 95.

Inami was born on April 25, 1921 in Madera, California to Shizuichi George Inami and Kohina Okitsu. After graduating from Madera High School, he went to UC Berkeley to get a degree in electrical engineering. He was unable to complete his degree at Berkeley after the break out of WWII caused his family to be removed from the West Coast. The Inamis were incarcerated in Jerome, Arkansas.

In 1944, while still in Jerome, Inami volunteered for the Army. He was assigned to the Military Intelligence Service because of his proficiency in Japanese. Inami was stationed at Fort Snelling, Minnesota where he eventually became an instructor. After the war, he served in the signal corps and then in the 8th U.S. Army during the Korean War. He retired from the Army in 1974 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

After he returned from Korea in 1952, he married Setsuko Matsubara and the following year his daughter, Cynthia Sachiko, was born. Inami worked for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory until he retired.

He enjoyed traveling, visiting libraries, going to garage sales, tinkering with electronics and was an avid ham radio enthusiast. He will be remembered for his cheerful demeanor, rosy cheeks and his love of telling stories.

Inami is survived by his daughter, Cindy Inami of Pleasanton, California; his brothers, Joe Inami and Thomas Inami of Madera, California; his sister, May Takata of Parlier, California, and his many nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his wife, Setsuko Matsubara, and his sisters, Lillian Takayama, Mabel Watanabe and Lucille Markovich.

Callaghan Mortuary is honored to be serving the Inami family. An online guestbook is available for condolences.

A graveside service will be held at the Mountain View Cemetery, 1411 West Belmont Avenue, Fresno, California on Saturday, April 29 at 11 a.m.