FILE - Henry Sakamoto, a prominent leader of Portland's Japanese American community, spoke in an interview with OPB at the Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland, Ore., in 2019.
Michael Bendixen / OPB
Henry Sakamoto, a prominent leader in Portland’s Japanese American community who helped bring cherry trees to the Tom McCall Waterfront Park downtown, has died at age 98.
In a post on social media Friday, his son Blake Sakamoto said the community leader died on Nov. 25.
“Henry Sakamoto’s legacy endures in Portland’s civic life, its cherry blossoms, and the generations he inspired,” Blake Sakamoto wrote.
Henry Sakamoto was born Jan. 27, 1927, in Portland to parents who had immigrated from Japan. At age 15, he was among the more than 120,000 Japanese Americans forcibly incarcerated during the Second World War.
After graduating from the University of Oregon with a degree in business administration in 1951, Sakamoto worked for more than three decades for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. His work included managing grain inventories across the western states and strengthening ties between Oregon’s wheat industry and Japanese markets.
Around 1990, Sakamoto helped organize a campaign to build the Japanese American Historical Plaza along Portland’s northwest waterfront. As part of that effort, he facilitated the donation of 100 Akebono cherry trees to the city of Portland from a Japanese trading group that had established branch offices in the city.
FILE - People gather under and walk along the blossom canopy of 100 ornamental cherry trees along the Willamette River in Portland, Ore., Friday, April 6, 2012. The trees, part of the Japanese-American Historical Plaza, were donated by the Japanese Grain Importers Association.
Don Ryan / AP
In 2019, Sakamoto spoke on OPB’s “Oregon Experience” about the connection between the cherry trees and the forced incarceration of Japanese Americans.
“The Historical Plaza is dedicated to the history of people of Japanese ancestry in Oregon. It’s also called the Bill of Rights Plaza. [It] helps people think about the status of the immigrants that have come and settled in Portland, and [are] still enjoying their life here. It’s a wonderful tribute,” he said.
Sakamoto was the first president of the Oregon Nikkei Endowment, helping establish the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center, which was later renamed the Japanese American Museum of Oregon. He also served as president of the Japanese Ancestral Society and commander of the Oregon Nisei Veterans.
In recognition of his lifelong service, Sakamoto received the Heart of the Community Award in 2011. In 2021, he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays by the Japanese government, recognizing his efforts to preserve the history of Japanese Americans and promote mutual understanding between the United States and Japan.
WATCH: Henry Sakamoto speaks to OPB’s “Oregon Experience” in 2019 about cherry trees along Portland’s waterfront:
