Obituary of Chiyoko Iwata McBryde

Chiyoko I. McBryde, 85, passed away August 16, 2015, in Melbourne, Florida. She was born February 25, 1930, in Nagoya, Japan. She is survived by her children Connor (Karrie) McBryde of Denver, CO; Sheila Kaiser of Melbourne; Kevin McBryde of Silver Spring, MD; and Erika McBryde of Melbourne, as well as her grandchildren: Austin, Shaine, Kimiko, William, Anthony, Clara, and Innis. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert C. McBryde. Chiyoko grew up in wartime Japan as the fifth of six children. Her family lost their home to bombing raids and Chiyoko abandoned her plans for college and medical school in an era when women were discouraged from pursuing either in traditional Japanese society. Instead, she attended a two-year teaching college where she studied English. After teaching English and working briefly as a journalist, she went to work for the Yakota Air Force Base Exchange, where she met her future husband, Capt. Robert C. McBryde, in 1959. They married in 1961 and moved to the United States, where they had their four children. She last visited her family in Japan in 1965 and lived the next fifty years in California and Florida. She joined Soka Gakkai International (SGI) in 1980 and remained a devout Buddhist for the remainder of her life. Education was very important to Chiyoko, and she constantly emphasized this to her children. Connor+óGé¼Gäós lasting memory of Chiyoko is her unceasing support of his education; Sheila recalls her love for her grandchildren; Kevin recalls her often frugal nature; and Erika fondly remembers her love of U.S. politics and laments that she will miss the upcoming presidential election. Chiyoko summarized her life in an interview told to her grandson Austin several years ago: +óGé¼+ôAs a young girl, she had such big goals in her life. She was unable to achieve those goals because of all the chaos and interruptions in her life caused by the war. All of her goals were ultimately met by her children. Life has been very satisfying and good to her, and she has absolutely no regrets in life.+óGé¼-¥A celebration of life will be held at a later date. Please share memories and sign the family guestbook and check back for further details.