In Loving Memory of Roger Wilkin

December 2, 2023 - New Providence Presbyterian Church

I’m Gary Murakami. My wife Linnea and I have been married for 26 years, and we have been active with Young Life on committee for about that long.

We met Roger and Sandy Wilkin through Young Life and became good friends. We went to Christina’s and Tony’s wedding even though we had not yet met them. We became friends with Roger’s children and grandchildren and have been so very blessed to be family friends.

For example, Linnea and Rachel make greeting cards together, and perhaps some of you may have received a card that they made. Will is in our Youth Club Bible class which includes using American Sign Language to memorize Bible verses. [ASL] Jesus loves you. [ASL] We love you.

At one occasion when Linnea and I were questioning our involvement with Young Life, with encouragement from Roger, we visited summer camp at Lake Champion. We saw kids stand up and “Say So,” declaring that they decided to follow Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. We rejoiced over the kids and celebrated with them!

Over two decades later, Linnea and I are still committed to Young Life. We have had the privilege of working with Roger and his wonderful family, and that includes ministries in this church, in the neighborhood, in local schools and communities.

From Hebrews 12
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

O so many years ago, Roger lit a torch and commenced an Olympic-like race by initiating Young Life here in our local area, bringing Christ to kids, and kids to Christ. That torch has been multiplied and propagated. Many Young Life staff and volunteers, friends and kids (many of you here) radiate the same heart, soul and spirit that Roger embodied. We are a great cloud of witnesses.

On November 14th, Roger sent Linnea and me a note of thanks, joy, commission, and love. On November 15th, Roger finished his race, and is now with Jesus at the right hand of the Father. On November 20th, Roger saw his recent prayers answered when we restarted WyldLife Club in Berkeley Heights at the Church of the Little Flower - some of his grandkids were there.

Roger is cheering us on as the local Young Life committee, including Linnea and I, carry that torch, as we all carry those torches, as we run the race before us with our eyes fixed on Jesus.

[ASL] Roger Wilkin (RW), we, we all, love you [heavenward].

Roger Wilkin Obituary

In joyful memory of Ken Murakami

Keep Looking Up To Jesus

By Gary Murakami, August 31, 2013, for memorial service, "A Celebration of Life"

I’m Gary Murakami, Ken’s son, and I want to celebrate his life and the many blessings God poured out on all of us through him.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Ken had humble beginnings as the son of Japanese immigrants to America. He was raised on a farm outside of Seattle and grew up with 10 siblings. Ken often referred to himself along with his older brothers George and Ben as “The Three Musketeers.” Ben was a year older and known as the good son and angel of the family. Ken was the most outspoken of the eleven children, and his dad considered him to be the most rebellious. As much as he tried to please his dad, he never felt fully accepted. By his teen years, Ken was a pugnacious kid looking for all the attention that he could get and had significant achievements in grades and sports. The search for his father’s acceptance factored into his search for his creator God and heavenly father.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Ken was a storyteller. He used stories often, sometimes to entertain kids and regularly to illustrate sermons as many of you have experienced. Here’s a story from his childhood.

I remember one incident of killing a chicken that limped. Dad had brought home several sacks full of white stately Leghorns. They were a proud looking flock compared to a few Rhode Island Reds that we had. But among the flock was one sickly and scrawny chicken. He limped on one bad leg. So I named him “Limpy.”

The other chickens continuously pecked him, and no matter how much I tried to favor him, Limpy kept aloof and fearful of the rest of the chickens. One day I picked up a rock and nearly knocked his head off. Limpy died and I hid him under a ramp.

Later, I came to realize I had killed Limpy because I hated weaklings, and here I was a kind of “Limpy” in my early high school days. From then on, I began to defend the underdogs. Deep inside, I hated anyone who belittled other people.

Ken recognized that he was flawed, weak and broken like Limpy. We also are all flawed, weak and broken like Limpy.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Ken suffered many incidents of injustice due to prejudice during World War II.

After his junior year in high school, all Japanese-Americans in the Seattle area were evacuated and interned in the Minidoka War Relocation Center in Idaho. Ken was able to leave the concentration camp to attend Shelley High School. He was exploited by a local farmer and worked 30 hours per week just for room and board. It was a lonely time, and he suffered bullying and lower grades just for being of Japanese ancestry. He was a victim of an assault. After graduation, he couldn’t wait to get back to Minidoka even though it was a concentration camp behind barbed wire.

Brother George and others were drafted by the US Army into the all Nisei 442^nd Regimental Combat Team. Their motto was “Go For Broke.” In the face of injustice at home in the USA, they fought against the injustice of Nazi Germany, even at the cost of their own lives. The 442^nd is the most decorated unit in all of American military history.

Ken was also drafted out of Minidoka into the US Army. Ironically, they sent him to Japanese language school and after the end of World War II, he served as a translator with the occupation of Japan.

Years later to illustrate the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, dad would tell kids the dramatized story of Medal of Honor winner Pfc. Sadao “Spud” Munemori. Spud’s many deeds while fighting in Italy were capped by a final self-sacrificing act. He dived for a grenade and smothered its blast with his body. By his swift, supremely heroic action Spud saved two of his men at the cost of his own life and did much to clear the path for his company's victorious advance.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Ken thought that he had it all by age 34. He had completed dental school, gotten married, started a family with two kids, built a home, became the first Japanese-American member of Kiwanis International, and achieved a 9 handicap at golf. Dad was a spectacular dentist. He took advanced courses and applied the latest techniques with great success on his patients. By the world’s standards, he was a story of triumph over injustice.

But it all felt empty. Brother Ben had died at age 25, and his father had said to Ken, “You should have been dead in the place of your brother!” Why did Ben, the good son, die? Why hadn’t he, the more rebellious and flawed son, died instead? Dad worried about what would happen to us kids if he died. Ken recalls,

In looking for an answer, I became convinced that I had broken God’s laws. I prayed something like this – “Lord, forgive me and take over my life.” A quiet peace followed.

A couple of days later, I woke up rejoicing, knowing that, in spite of struggles at home, there remained a peace far beyond any that I had ever experienced in my past. I prayed, “Lord, whatever you want me to do, I will do for you.”

It was at that time that I suddenly found myself truly rejoicing in reading and studying the Bible for the first time. Shortly after, I simply knew that Jesus was God, the One who came as man. He in his death had paid the penalty for my sins. That was enough for me, for He had also come into my life to live with me forever.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Ken would share the gospel of Jesus Christ with anyone and everyone. Over the years, this included fellow dentists, indios and mestizos while on dental missions in Ecuador, hippies, kids in the church Awana club, my fellow teammates on the Downers Grove South High School wrestling team, church visitors, and medical workers in his last days.

I can still picture the day when Dad strode into wresting practice wearing a robe reading “King of the wrestlers.” He then surprised me by challenging me to a match with the whole team looking on. I took it too seriously and pinned him without mercy. A teammate was astounded and said, “How could you do that? My father would never let me humiliate him. If I did, he’d whup me.” I realized that in spite of being a disciplinarian, Dad was a really great loving and merciful father. My teammates were quite entertained, and over time, Dad shared the story of God’s love and mercy with them. Many of them came to know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

As Ken shared the story of God’s amazing love, grace, and mercy, he would use various key phrases repeatedly. I hope that you remember some of the following evangelistic proverbs, and that the memory brings you joy.

·      Keep looking up

·      God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life (Campus Crusade Four Spiritual Laws)

·      Please be patient with me God is not finished with me yet (PBPWMGINFWMY – Bill Gothard – Institute in Basic Life Principles)

·      Give it all to Jesus

·      Lay it all down at the foot of the cross

·      Praise The Lord (P.T.L., as on the front of the program for this memorial service)

·      You’re worth the price of God (one of my favorites)

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Through the strength of Jesus Christ, Ken was transformed and refined over the years. Pride was displaced by humility, bitterness was banished through forgiveness, judgment was surpassed by mercy, tyranny was overthrown by love, and “gaman” or stoic perseverance was transformed into joy even during suffering by identifying with Jesus.

Ken emptied his life of human self and filled his life with God’s Word and the Holy Spirit progressively over his course of his life.

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. [Galatians 2:20]

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

After fourteen years of dental practices, Ken went into voluntary Christian ministry. I recall that he preached to his patients as they sat captive in the dental chair. He’d say “Repent” and the dental drill (with sound effects) would give them all the reason to say “Yes, Lord Jesus!” He decided, “I’m going to quit my day job.” All joking aside, Dad heard God’s call to help other families, especially teens to find an answer to rebuilding relationships in their lives. In dentistry, he always enjoyed making bridges. As pastor of Lakeside Church, he enjoyed making bridges to restore relationship with God and with each other, especially with families. One of his greatest joys was baptizing believers in the waters of Lake Geneva in Wisconsin.

I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. [Acts 20:24].

Blessed are you, Ken Murakami

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Ken can say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” [2 Timothy 4:7] And his heavenly father will say with great approval, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”

We are blessed by God through Ken Murakami

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. [Hebrews 12:1-2]

What was the joy set before Jesus? It certainly wasn’t a joy to carry the penalty of our sin and die. But the result of enduring the cross was to redeem us to peace with God the Father, to rebuild the bridge of restored relationship with us as his sons and daughters.  Ken, you and I, we, all of us, are that joy set before Jesus.

Ken is now one of the cloud of witnesses in the church triumphant face to face with his Savior Jesus Christ in the presence of God the Father. And perhaps Dad is smiling as he feeds a white leghorn chicken that’s zooming around his feet, and he’s calling him “Limpy.” With Dad as a witness, I’m running the race set before me, looking unto Jesus. I look forward to rejoicing with him in heaven surrounded by many precious people that he touched with the gospel throughout his life. And I look forward to hearing him say, we all look forward to hearing him say,

“Keep looking up!”

In memory of Phyllis Kiyo Unosawa on July 28, 2013, by Gary Murakami

I’m Gary Murakami, Phyllis’ nephew through her sister Marion.

Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Emmanuel, God with us. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain. O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, behold your God! Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

With these verses from the Bible put into song in Handel’s Messiah, Phyllis Unosawa proclaimed the gospel time and again, in venues great and small, her rich contralto voice soaring heavenward. Each time declared victory for us – over the racial prejudice that locked her away behind barbed wire in a concentration camp during her childhood, over the discouragement of a high school teacher who told her that she could not sing, and over the numerous hardships and challenges of life in this fallen world that threaten to defeat us and rob us of joy. We are here today to commemorate Phyllis and her triumphant life.

When I was a child, I fondly remember that we received a card from Phyllis preparing us for her impending arrival via train from Chicago to Seattle. Her unique signature was to draw glasses on one of the faces on the card. In downtown Seattle as our Aunty Phyllis stepped off the train, we cousins lined up and sang with a melody that I can still recall,

O hail great aunty from the far land of the great soot, we hail thee!

Even though Phyllis was living far away in Chicago by herself away from her family, we still felt connected through the many cards and gifts that she thoughtfully sent for holidays. We would search the cards for the trademark glasses like “Where’s Waldo?” and smile and laugh when we found them. Years later when my family moved from Seattle to the Chicago area, Phyllis became our sole family and our anchor in that far land.

Phyllis was an accomplished artist. When I was a child, I daily saw her pen and ink drawings of Italian ladies holding umbrellas in the rain. She told the story of how a friend identified her work. “Those are your hands!” the friend said, pointing to the drawing. She was also amused by listening-in to people as they viewed her work. Someone made a grandiose comment on how she had captured the meaning of life in a painting. “No,” she thought, “I was just expressing how I felt that day.”

To help us remember and commemorate her, here’s a mix of nouns and adjectives covering only some of the A to Z of Phyllis and her life.

Accomplished, alto, adventurous, archivist for R R Donnelly, Art Institute of Chicago, artistic, baroque, Beacon Hill, beetles (cars), bento master, big hair, capable, caring, Chicago, Christmas cards and gifts, classical, contralto, courageous, cultured, decisive, democratic, determined, 

Easter cards, educated, energetic, enthusiastic, excellent, famous, father James, Florence (Firenze), Garfield High School, glasses, googly eyes, Grant Park Chorus, graphic artist, Halloween and other holiday cards, humorous, independent, interesting, an internee, Italy, fluent in Italian, 

Japanese-American, kindhearted, knowledgeable, lakefront condo, loving, mezzo-soprano, mother May, Minidoka War Relocation Center, Moody Church, New Years feasts, nieces (in Chicago) Christine and Colleen with their loving care, opinionated, oratorio, an overcomer, a performer, poised, proper, private, quick, resolute, 

Seattle, serious, sister Jeanette, sister Marion, soloist, sophisticated, St. James Cathedral Choir, strong, a survivor, talented, tap dancing, thoughtful, unique, Unosawa, van, vanagon, Volkswagen, a woman of conviction, a world-traveler, x-ray vision, yancha (naughty kid) spotter, zesty.

Phyllis did many wonderful things in the presence of her family and friends, which are not recorded here. But these are written that we may remember Phyllis, her life, and her witness that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that we have life in his name.

In the more recent years as Phyllis’ health deteriorated, she lovingly continued to send holiday cards. I reminisce about receiving a card, searching for the trademark glasses, and crying because the glasses were missing. Maybe the grandiose art critic wasn’t that far off – to me, Phyllis’ signature glasses captured some of the essence of the meaning of life.

We’re here today not only to commemorate Phyllis and to console each other, but also to celebrate her life and our hope in Jesus that is expressed so powerfully in Handel’s Messiah.

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God. For now is Christ risen from the dead, the first fruits of them that sleep. Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. The trumpet shall sound, and [Phyllis] shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortality.

Phyllis lifts up her life with strength, and lifts up her voice with strength, and sings:

Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Others join in:

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

And I also lift up my life and my voice with strength to testify, we all lift up our lives and our voices with strength to testify, now here on earth, and someday again together with Phyllis in heaven, singing in chorus:

Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. Blessing and honour, glory and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen.

Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs

Remember a book that opened the skies for you and revealed a whole new world of thought?  "Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs" by Nicklaus Wirth was that book for me while studying at Northwestern University in the late 1970s.  The author helped me divine that programming is much more than procedural statements, that recursion is much more than calculating factorials.  Recursive data structures and algorithms are intrinsically interwoven, and they are powerful programming tools can solve real world problems.  I felt like Archimedes jumping out of his bathtub and running down the street naked shouting "Eureka."

My eyes were opened and I saw lists, trees, graphs, and recursion everywhere, in their glorious beauty.  The classic puzzle of the towers of Hanoi could now be solved to any number of levels.  In the Computer Science Research Lab at NU, we hooked up a pen plotter to a DEC PDP-8 minicomputer and watched mesmerized as it drew space-filling Hilbert curves programmed by Bill Nowicki.  It finally dawned on me that I wanted to be a doctor of programming languages and data structures rather than an MD, so I switch from Biology/pre-med to Computer Science, thanks to encouragement from friends like Rich Karhuse.  I felt like Newton struck by the proverbial apple.

I devoured books like "Fundamentals of Data Structures in Pascal" by Ellis Horowitz and Sartaj Sahni, especially since Ellis was my favorite professor at the University of Southern California (USC).  And now I'm working at 10gen, the MongoDB company, where Eliot Horowitz is co-founder and CTO.  While Eliot replied that he is not related to Ellis, in my head, they are akin.  Ellis fostered in me the joy of programming languages plus data structures.  Eliot has induced in me the joy of programming languages plus databases.

It may seem like we've come full circle, revisiting old principles and ideas.  I hope so, for the nature of things re-emerges regularly like spring even if we bury it in a snowfall of obscuring detail.  But there are important improvements that transform it into an upward spiral and a new season of thought and capability embodied in products like MongoDB.  There have been many advances over the 35 years since Wirth's book in technology and in our theory and practice.

In a series of blog post starting here, I hope to repeat resonating truths, share insights, clarify understanding, and rediscover the wonder years in computer programming and beyond.  For life is a tapestry with interwoven threads composed of thoughts, ideas, experiences, people, places, and times.  I want my friends, coworkers, and others to see and enjoy what I see.

Do I sound pretentious?  No, for I'm standing on the shoulders of giants.  Or rather imagine: I'm bobbing in a wave pool with my wife Linnea in the Allure of the Seas, Royal Carribean’s cruise ship displacing 225,000 tons of the Atlantic Ocean.  I'm dreaming about matching Ruby objects to BSON for MongoDB, while munching apples and shouting "Eureka."

Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs

61th Annual Observance – Thursday, May 3rd, 2012, 7:00PM

 

National Day of Prayer – One Nation Under God

 

The Presbyterian Church at New Providence

Prayer for Large Businesses, by Gary Murakami

How good and how pleasant it is for us to dwell together in unity!

How great it is for us to work together in harmony!

As we review large companies like those in the Dow 30,

We are amazed at the great things that can be accomplished.

I pray on behalf of large corporations and on behalf of all of us.

May we expect great things from God,

May we attempt great things for God,

May we accomplish great things for God.

May your blessings be poured out on us.

May God’s good purpose be woven through all that we endeavor to do.

As we produce and eat food and drink beverages,

May we hunger for you, the Bread of Life,

And thirst for you, the Living Water.

As we develop medicines and take them for our health,

May we look to you for healing as the Great Physician.

As we construct buildings and homes,

May we dwell on this,

“Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain.”

May we envision that our final home is in heaven with you.

As we finance our homes and lives,

May our treasure be in heaven.

As we produce and use energy to heat and light our homes,

May we experience that all life comes from you.

As we insure our businesses and homes,

May we place our trust and hope in you.

As we build and use phone networks,

May we talk to God in prayer, the most important communication.

As we build and use computers and process information,

May we know that your thoughts are higher than our thoughts.

As we produce and watch entertainment and movies,

May we retell the greatest story ever told,

The gospel that Jesus Christ died for us.

As we work in large businesses,

Help us not to feel like an insignificant cog in a huge machine.

May we appreciate that we are members of the body of Christ,

Fitly joined together.

May we divine that we are important to God,

Wonderfully made us for his good purpose.

May we affirm the message with our coworkers,

That God loves us.

Finally, as we build airliners, operate them,

And fly to visit friends and family,

May we wait upon you, Lord,

And mount up with wings like eagles.

In Memory of Allen S. Hobson

Presented at the memorial service March 20, 2012
The Presbyterian Church at New Providence

I’m Gary Murakami and I would like to testify to the person of Allen Hobson, a blessing from God to us.

Allen, Daisy, and I are long-time members of our Sunday School class titled “Streams” which explores how many wonderful traditions are woven into the fabric, tapestry, and heritage of the church. Al was a full participant and active member, often quoting scripture and sharing testimony in his unique, crotchety, and sometimes dour manner. Fortunately this was often relieved by his good sense of humor and great smile.

His favorite passages were from the book of John, especially John 3:16. He would recite fervently from chapter 3,

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

I already miss his humor, and even his unique manner. I miss being able to reach over to Al, poke him, and call him “buddy.” But Al’s heritage lives on. His faithfulness and fervor are woven into the fabric and tapestry of my life and into the lives of all of us who were privileged to know him. While Al is no longer here in the flesh, he was born of the Spirit through his belief in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Al is in heaven with him, and when I see Al again, he’ll quote yet again, this time with great joy,

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

And we’ll respond yet again,

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

We’ll smile together and say,

“Look, here’s Jesus.

See, we’re born again into everlasting life!

We believe!”

In Memory of Lee E. McMahon

December 19, 2011 at 9:29pm

At ManorCare in New Providence, my father-in-law Arne Swenson sits with Gertrude and Helen for meals. I eventually found that Helen's last name is McMahon, and being a Bear's fan, I mentioned Jim McMahon of Chicago Bears and Superbowl Shuffle fame. Helen told me that her husband's name was Lee, and I told her that I had a coworker at Bell Labs named Lee McMahon. I found a photo via Google images, and she said "That's him!"

I worked with Lee McMahon and Bill Marshall on Datakit, a computer network invented by Sandy Fraser in Computer Science Research at Bell Labs Murray Hill. In my mind, I can still picture Lee and Bill in the "Wurlitzer" room which was adjacent to the Unix room in building 2, fifth floor. It was called the Wurlitzer room because the layers of consoles for the Datakit switches resembled a massive organ. Lee and Bill stood at the center of it all.

I can still picture Lee standing in my office doorway to chat about work. He was a chain smoker and would tap ashes into the door latch hole. When I poked him about it he said that there was no problem since the door jamb and walls were all steel. I still wondered at the surprise of a column of ashes for workers doing any remodeling. Lee got throat cancer and a laryngectomy. He returned to work after treatment, and I remember the shock and sympathetic pain that I felt for him as he struggled to speak. We resorted to communicating via pen and paper. Looking back, I can see the interest and effort that he took to encourage me professionally and personally - what a great guy!

Reposted from Facebook

Lee E. McMahon
Public Figure

Description

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lee E. McMahon (1931–1989) was an American computer scientist. He was a graduate of St. Louis University and obtained a Ph.D. in Psychology at Harvard. He worked for Bell labs from 1963 until 1989, and is best known for his contributions to early versions of the Unix operating system, in particular the sed stream editor. He contributed to the development of comm, qsort, grep, index, cref, cu, and Datakit. He also devised the McMahon system tournament.

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Description above from the Wikipedia article Lee E. McMahon, licensed under CC-BY-SA full list of contributors here. Community Pages are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, anyone associated with the topic.