Jack Hiroshi Matsumoto

Hiroshi "Jack" Matsumoto was born in Phoenix, Arizona on October 20, 1930. He passed away peacefully at 91 years old on June 13, 2022 at his home in Torrance, California.

Jack was preceded in death by his mother, father and siblings: George Onodera, Aileen Onodera, Yoshio Matsumoto, Tomiko Yamamoto, Takayashi Matusumoto, Emiko Koide, Haruko Kurachi. He is survived by brother Sakai Onodera and adopted family members: Anna Torres, Carlos Lopez, Willie Bruce, Adrian Bruce, Ricky Bruce, Jacob Hernandez, Ambrosia and Estrella Lopez.

He was born to Yoshimi and Taka Matsumoto on October 20, 1930. He was the youngest of 6 children. His parents immigrated to the United States in 1923 to Arizona. In December 1931, when Jack was a year old, his father Yoshimi, passed away in a car accident. Jack's mother was left with 6 small children. Jack's mother remarried to Yeiji Onodera in February 1932, and shortly after this he gained 3 additional siblings. He was raised for most of his childhood in Glendale, Arizona where he spent many years working on his family's farm.

During World War II, Jack and his family were interned in the Poston Relocation Center in Arizona. During this time, Jack attended grade school in the camp. On September 5, 1944, Jack was released out of the camp as a 12 year old. They released him to his grandmother, who needed his help on the farm.

After being released from the Poston Relocation Center, he enrolled in 8th grade at Glendale Grammar School. He later graduated from Glendale Union High School on May 27, 1949. Jack excelled in school in math, science and physical education. His teachers commented that he was smart, shy and popular.

As a young adult, Jack moved to Los Angeles, California for career opportunities in the 1950s and later settled in Gardena, California.

Jack's love of electronics began as a young man. He went to school to learn electronics. He had a long career with TRW (now Boeing) where he worked as an Electrical Engineer for many years in the Technical Products Division. He retired in 1992, with over 19 years of service as an Electrical Engineer where he designed machines for air traffic control centers.

After his retirement in 1992, Jack enjoyed golfing and traveling. He had a fond love of traveling and once traveled around the world. In recent years, he loved to watch the kids at amusement parks and tobogganing in Big Bear. His passion was attending softball games for Ambi and Estrella, never missing any games. He was often Ambi's pitching coach from the stands, who would yell "Settle Down Ambi", when her pitching was not to his standards. Jack was always the first fan lined up directly behind home plate, so he would never miss a second of the game.

Jack loved going to Dodger games, Justin Turner was his favorite player. He would say "Justin is my hero". If he couldn't attend the games in person, he was always watching the games from his spot on the sofa, underneath his colorful crocheted blanket. One of Jack's favorite quotes was that "you cannot teach an old dog new tricks", which he would remind people often.

Jack's favorite foods included Diet Mountain Dew, Sushi, Chicken Teriyaki, and chocolate chip cookies (which he liked to sneak into his pockets when no one was looking). He would often go on walks (both inside and outside the house) and relax in the backyard with Gaby the dog. He was always on his computer, conducting online research, reading news, self diagnosing himself with new diseases and he especially loved to study the stock market. Jack would stay up until the late hours of the night clicking away on his computer.

Jack will always be remembered for his loving and thoughtful personality and as someone who always lived with integrity. Despite the injustices and racism that his family endured, Jack never let this impact his quest to succeed in the United States. He will be deeply missed by all those who had the opportunity to know and love him.