Ichy and Marii at Maya and Bob's wedding, Richmond, 1994

Ichy in his chair, 1987

Ichiro Hasegawa was born in Renton, WA on August 2, 1915 and died on December 24, 1999 in Richmond, VA of chronic lung disease.

The son of a Japanese immigrant farmer, Ichy entered school not knowing a single word of English. He went on to graduate summa cum laude from the University of Washington where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He was a member of Alpha Chi Sigma, the American Chemical Society, and was listed in Men of Science.

During World War II Ichy and his family were forced to leave Washington and were interned at the Tule Lake Relocation Center in California. He was permitted to leave when he was admitted to Kenyon College, Gambier, OH where he earned a special student diploma.

In 1981 Ichy retired from the research division of Phillip Morris where he worked in electron microscopy and mass spectronomy. He had previously been employed by Atlantic Richfield in Philadelphia taking early retirement in 1965.

After retirement, he volunteered at Meals on Wheels and the Richmond Open High School where he taught math. He was active in several political campaigns including the presidential campaigns of Henry Wallace in 1948, when he was a delegate to the Progressive Party convention, and George McGovern as a delegate to the Virginia State Democratic Convention in 1972.

A self-taught sailor, Ichy and his family built a 24 foot sailboat in their backyard in New Jersey. It was christened “Kiyama”, meaning “a mountain of wood” in Japanese while also incorporating the names of his wife and daughters. The family spent one summer cruising the Chesapeake Bay.

He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Marii Kyogoku Hasegawa; daughters, Kimi Hasegawa of Marlboro, VT and Maya Hasegawa of Roxbury, MA; grandson, Korin Hasegawa-John; sons-in-law, Steven Bruce John and Robert Lewis Wyckoff, II; and his brothers, Jiro of Cleveland, OH and Saburo of Rockville, MD.

A private memorial service for members of the family will be held at a later date. Those wishing to make a memorial contribution should do so to: The Union of Concerned Scientists, Two Brattle Square, Cambridge, MA 02138.