The Rev. Giko Tsuge of Hilo dead at 92
By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Staff Writer
HILO, Hawai'i — A funeral will be held at 5 p.m. tomorrow for the Rev. Giko Yoshihiro Tsuge, the retired chief minister of the Big Island's largest Buddhist church.
Tsuge, 92, died July 6 in Hilo.
Tsuge was one of the first bilingual Buddhist ministers to serve in the Islands. His ability to speak Japanese and English helped Buddhism flourish in Hilo, said retired banker Albert Nishimura, a senior leader of the 1,100-family Hilo Betsuin of the Honpa Hongwanji.
"Rev. Tsuge was among the first to give a decent sermon in English," Nishimura said.
Tsuge was born in 1908 in Shimane, Japan, and came to Hawai'i in the 1930s to minister first at Kona Hongwanji Mission in Kealakekua, then at Honoka'a Hongwanji Mission.
He was later transferred to Hilo Hongwanji Mission where he served for 25 years before retiring in 1974. That mission is now known as the Hilo Betsuin.
Even after his retirement, Tsuge, remembered for his outgoing personality and ready laugh, served as a senior adviser to temple activities, including martial arts programs in kendo and judo.
He also helped bring about construction of the $3.6 million Sanga Hall next door to the Hilo temple on Kilauea Avenue. His funeral will be the first held in the 400-seat hall, with Hawai'i Bishop Chikai Yosemori of Honolulu presiding over the service.
Tsuge's son, the late Wilfred Tsuge, was born in Honoka'a and moved to California, where he became the chief tax appraiser of Los Angeles County before retiring in 1992. He moved to Hilo with his daughter, Jade Akiko Tsuge, who became her grandfather's caregiver. The three generations lived together for three years before Wilfred Tsuge died in 1995.
"It was a wonderful three years for our three generations to be together," Jade Akiko Tsuge said yesterday.
Tsuge also is survived by a daughter-in-law, Mary Jane Krause-Tsuge of California. The family requests casual attire and no flowers. Dodo Mortuary is handling the funeral arrangements.
