Clarence Taba, WWII veteran and banker, dead at 79
By Adrienne Ancheta
Advertiser Staff Writer
Clarence Tenki Taba, a longtime banker and World War II veteran, died last Thursday in Honolulu. He was 79.
Taba was born April 7, 1922, in Lahaina, Maui, as the fifth of 13 children. During the war, he was awarded two Bronze Stars and a Silver Star for courage in combat, and a Purple Heart with two Oak Leaf Clusters for injuries in three battles. He was a first sergeant in the Army.
Clarence Taba was awarded two Bronze Stars and a Silver Star for his actions as a member of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
He worked with banks until retiring in 1997, first as a senior bank examiner for the Territory of Hawai'i and later in management positions with private banks such as City Bank and Bank of Hawai'i.
He then served the Hawai'i Bankers Association for 22 years, helping to write bank legislation. His work with banks helped him establish a savings and loan program for the 442nd Veterans Club, where he was treasurer, vice president and president.
Taba was also a founding member of the Hawai'i Department of Disabled American Veterans and treasurer at Manoa Valley Church for 27 years until he was forced to retire because of heart problems.
"He didn't feel like, 'I'm doing all this volunteer work for free,' it was something he was proud of," said his wife, Nancy Nobuko Taba.
His wife remembers him as someone always full of energy and who enjoyed to travel.
Taba is also survived by brothers Victor and Masa; sisters Tsuruko Taba, Adele Onaga, Lurline Matsumoto, Yoshiko Taba and Kimiko Taba; sons Dean and Stuart; daughter Gayle Ohashi; and a granddaughter.
Visitation begins at 2 p.m. Saturday at Manoa Valley Church with service at 3. Inurnment will be private. No flowers. Casual attire. Arrangements by Hosoi Garden Mortuary.
