In Loving Memory Helen Keiko Yamamoto 1932 – 2021

Helen Keiko Yamamoto, 88 years old, of Sacramento, CA, passed away on February 16, 2021. Helen passed away peacefully at 4PM (PST) with her husband, Kats at her side as well as granddaughter, Devon.

Helen was born on May 19, 1932 to Nancy and Nelson Dairiki at Mercy Hospital in Sacramento, CA. She spent most of her formative years growing up at the Main Hotel in downtown Sacramento. In 1942, due to Executive Order 9066, she was interned with her family to various internment camps, Tule Lake, CA, Jerome, AR, Rohwer, AR, and Granada, CO. After camp, Helen returned to Los Angeles and then Sacramento and graduated in 1950 from Sacramento High School.

She met the love of her life, Kats [Katsumi] Yamamoto, while working at the soda fountain counter at the Rexall Main Drug Store in Loomis, CA. They wed in 1952, going on to have three children, Shirlene [Ault], Alan and Mavis [Williams].

She attended UCLA for a few years while Kats completed trade school in automotive repair. She then returned to Sacramento with Kats and completed her teaching credential at CSU, Sacramento. She began teaching elementary school (grades 1-6) for the Robla School District at Taylor Street Elementary School. While teaching in a financially challenged school district, she was a dedicated instructor, often having to buy school supplies with her own money and occasionally providing food for students. While she was a disciplinarian in the classroom, she was beloved by her students and even well after she retired, she would often be approached by her then adult former students while out shopping in Sacramento and they would always tell her how much she made an impact on their childhoods.

A lifelong learner, she went on to attain her Master's degree in Early Childhood Education from CSU, Sacramento. She also continued to take courses in Japanese language, cake decorating, woodshop, sewing, knitting, ballroom dancing and any other class that piqued her interest. She enjoyed cooking and keeping her Japanese culture alive by hosting the annual mochitsuki and shogatsu for many years. Many family members in Japan have remarked how well Helen had mastered the Japanese language.

After retiring in 1987, Helen decided to return to work in the Admissions office at Sacramento City College and enjoyed assisting the Japanese foreign exchange students enrolled there. As was her nature, she was always “adopting” these exchange students, being their “mother away from home.”

In total, Helen spent 33 years as an educator or affiliated with institutions of higher learning. She then retired a second time to help care for her three granddaughters, Cameron, Laurel and Devon as well as embark on many months' long motorhome trips with Kats across the United States.

She is survived by her husband, Kats, two daughters, Shirlene Ault (husband Jack) and Mavis Williams (husband Jeff), and son, Alan. Grandchildren, Cameron Williams, Laurel Williams and Devon Williams. Helen is also survived by her siblings, Jack Dairiki, Ned Dairiki, and Alice Murphy.