On Friday, Sept. 30, at 5:30pm, the Tanakas will close their repair shop’s doors for good.
But, before they do so, they’re taking the next few weeks as an opportunity to show appreciation for their customers and the community by offering “Thank you, LB” specials and even sharing advice on maintaining lawn equipment.
Shusaku and Fukuyo met in Shingu, Japan, through her brother, Masato, who was Shusaku’s schoolmate. The couple were married in Japan in January 1978 and, later that year, moved to the United States.
“When [Shusaku] came here (to Long Beach), he was doing gardening jobs,” Fukuyo said, explaining that her husband had taken over his uncle’s gardening business after the elder relative had become ill.
Eventually, Shusaku became interested in opening a lawnmower-repair shop, so he visited other nearby Japanese-American residents who already had such businesses, to learn as much as he could.
In 1983, the couple opened their first shop on Cherry Avenue, then later moved to another location on the same street, then eventually relocated to the current location.
“So, we never [left] Cherry Avenue,” Fukuyo said. “We moved two times here, but always on Cherry Avenue. So, the same customers came to each store.”
She said they have had several of the same clients from the beginning.
[aesop_image imgwidth=”500px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Screen-Shot-2016-09-08-at-3.07.07-PM.png” align=”center” lightbox=”on” caption=”A recent photo of The Tanaka Family shows, from left in back, Timothy, Fukuyo, Shusaku and Eddie, and, from left in front, son-in-law Kavin, Joyce and Emily” captionposition=”center”] “One customer— he was from the first store— he just had a stroke a couple of months ago,” Fukuyo said. “He had helped us with jobs. Two weeks ago, I called him [to tell him] we decided the date to close the store. He was so disappointed. But we cannot do it forever.”
However, the Tanakas didn’t want to just “disappear” without acknowledging their customer base. So, Fukuyo asked their daughter Emily to contact local media to announce the closing and thank their clientele.
Emily, an artist who studied architecture in college, had already been involved in promoting her parents’ shop, having designed their business card in her signature line-drawing style.
That artistic inclination seems to have been fostered by Shusaku and Fukuyo, who themselves are engaged in creative but functional endeavors. They certainly have a number of interests to keep them busy in retirement.
“We always had an activity like drawing with crayons, and we always had a box of Legos,” Emily said. “Me and my sister studied Japanese brush calligraphy at Japanese school on Saturdays, over on the west side of Long Beach. My mom could draw. My dad can too. He was always building stuff, like he built us a bar to hang off of, to play in the back yard. He’s always building and getting into new hobbies. My brother Tim does photography on the side. My sister does ceramics now. Eddie makes films. And I do my art stuff. My mom still does Ikebana, which is Japanese flower arranging, and she’s also the one who pushed my sister and me to do brush calligraphy. But now she’s doing it herself too and also does ceramics.”
[aesop_image imgwidth=”500px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Screen-Shot-2016-09-08-at-3.06.59-PM.png” align=”right” lightbox=”on” caption=”From left: Eddie, Joyce, Timothy and Emily Tanaka in Bryce Canyon National Park in 1996″ captionposition=”right”] Aside from encouraging artistic endeavors, Shusaku and Fukuyo prioritized education for their children, all of whom have earned degrees. All four children attended Hughes Middle School, then Poly High School before heading to college.
Joyce, now 37, graduated from the University of Irvine with a degree in studio art with a focus on photography. Emily, 36, graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a degree in architecture. Timothy, 30, graduated from UCLA in cognitive psychology. Eddie, 29, also graduated from UCI with a degree in film.
Their parents had both studied architecture as well.
As part of his goodbye to the community, Shusaku is enthusiastic about sharing his four tips for maintaining lawnmowers, as follows:
First, use clean and fresh gas only. Fuel stabilizers aid fuel cleanliness. Secondly, use gas within 30 days of purchasing it. Third, check the oil level of the machine before each use. Change engine oil after 25 hours of use. And lastly, clean the air filter every three uses. Replace the filter when it appears worn.
Tanaka Lawnmower is located at 5301 Cherry Ave.
