Remembering Ron Mamiya (’67) 1949 – 2019
Remembering Ron Mamiya (’67) 1949 – 2019
Reflections from: Jeff Abolofia (’67); Geri Alhadeff (’67); Steve Ticeson (’67); Mary Duryee, (’67)
At the age of 70, Ron Mamiya died on May 26, 2019, surrounded by his family. He stayed strong, hopeful, and positive throughout his battle with prostate cancer, even up until the last days.Born in 1949 to Yoshi and George Mamiya, Ron was the eldest of 3 sons. He was born and raised in Seattle. Ron grew up on Beacon Hill, attended Franklin High School, University of Washington, and Gonzaga University, where he earned his law degree in 1976. Ron went into private practice in Seattle and was appointed as a Municipal Court Judge in 1980. He served as a judge until his retirement in 2010. He also served on several appointed commissions for 20+ years in Seattle.
At Franklin he was Senior class President, and a member of the Bel Canto choir, touring Europe with the choir in 1966.
Ron singing with Andy Anderson (’67) at a wedding reception, 2014
Jeff: Before going to law school, Ron and I were on similar tracks with hopes of a degree in one of the health care professions. One of the prerequisites needed to apply was the more advanced Chemistry 335 Series. From the beginning, we knew this was not going to be easy so four of us formed a group of study partners to help understand the lectures and get prepped for the midterms and the final.
We met on campus in the evenings about once a week and some of the sessions would go late into the night. Second floor classrooms in Balmer Hall were our favorite places to study since we needed blackboards to draw out chemical formulas. The doors were locked after hours at Balmer but the stairways at each end of the building provided access. The building facades were open from the second floor up and when I lifted Ron on to my shoulders, he was thin enough and agile enough to skinny his way into the building and come back down to open the front door.
The four of us got a lot done during those sessions and were better off for having studied together rather than separately. My favorite sessions were the evenings before exams. We would study all through the night and into the morning of the exam … then just before the test, we would go to the HUB and have a couple of donuts and a cup of coffee. We all know now that wasn’t the best way to study but the four of us did well and eventually got into graduate schools. Ron was a great person and could climb to any height for his friends.
Geri: I really got to know Ron recently. We knew enough of one another to say “hi” but that was about it. I became his “secretary/confidante” when we worked on the 50th reunion committee. He was a leader, a judge, a point person, a foodie, smart, understanding, easy to talk to about life but totally incompetent with the technical side of life. Because he needed so much help sending emails, etc., he leaned on me to do that work for him - easy for me and my pleasure. Because of all of the details connected with a reunion, we spoke often and got to talking about life, friends, mistakes, worries, marriages, etc. Our conversations would often last an hour. My husband came in during one of those long conversations and asked what on earth we had to talk about for so long. I miss his friendship and wit. I miss his warmth and the ease of that friendship. He was truly, truly a ‘mensch’.
Golfing buddies, driving. Steve Ticeson (’67), Ron, and John Chin (’67)
Mary: Ron was part of a group of high school friends who continued to get together after retirement, having been friends and fellow singers in the Bel Canto choir at Franklin. A number of these friends sang at my wedding reception in 2014 – a very emotional offering of friends, honoring the ability for me and my partner, both of us women, to marry. This possibility could not have been imagined when we were in high school -- and even at that moment was legal only in certain states; it would be another year before the US Supreme Court guaranteed marriage equality. That afternoon, surrounded by friends and family, is a high point in my life, and Ron the best of witnesses.
Steve: Ron Mamiya once told me that I drove like an old man… I of course took that as a compliment since I averaged, off the tee, about 230 yards. He was actually talking about my driving. Ron, John Chin, John Murphy and I (high school classmates all) played many a western Washington golf course together over the years and a lot of times I would drive. The inside joke was on me. Even while in failing health, Ron never lost his sense of humor, his fighting sprit, nor his willingness to be his authentic self. I miss my old o’buddy, but I’m happy in the knowledge that he’ll never have a last par three. Rest in peace Ron. Play on my friend.”