Mr. Michitoshi Soga

SOGA, Mr. Michitoshi Kalamazoo, MI Michitoshi Soga, emeritus professor of physics at Western Michigan University, who dedicated his career working with students to deepen the understanding between Japan and the United States, passed away in the early hours of March 3, 2013, in his home in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He was 86.
He had been battling cancer, first in his esophagus then his lungs, for more than a year. The richness of Dr. Soga's life can be measured by how deeply he touched those around him; especially his wife of 57 years, Ryoko, his children and their families. He brought his young family from Japan to the United States, opening opportunities and horizons for his children likely unavailable had they stayed in their homeland. He survived the air raids on Tokyo during World War II, and the senseless carnage he witnessed as a teenager led him to abhor war and work for peace. He sought to promote better understanding between Japan and the United States - former enemies that became great allies. To that end, he worked to increase the flow of students between U.S. and Japanese colleges and universities. He found joy in quiet moments, sitting in the backyard of his home in Kalamazoo, either alone or in quiet conversation with his beloved Ryoko whom he met as a high school student more than 66 years ago. He found joy in cooking together with and for his wife, favoring deceptively simple but delicious menus that were meticulously planned and painstakingly prepared. He also found joy in the company of old friends and the seemingly endless stream of young people who were a regular presence in his household while he taught at WMU. The Japanese students, especially, could always count on a ready ear and home-cooked comfort food from the homeland when they dropped in on Soga-Sensei. Dr. Soga was born September 17, 1926, in Tokyo, the sixth child of Sugao and Ko Soga. His life spanned three Japanese imperial eras --Taisho, Showa and Heisei - a period that saw unimaginable changes in Japan from the rise of militarism, to a war that left the country in ruins and occupied by foreign powers for the first time in its history, to its resurrection as a global economic power. Dr. Soga studied physics at Gakushuin University in Tokyo, receiving his bachelor's degree in 1953 and a master's degree in 1955. That same year, he married Ryoko Nishi, his high school sweetheart. Studying at Tokyo University of Education under Professor Shinichiro Tomonaga, a future Nobel laureate in physics, Dr. Soga was awarded a doctorate in theoretical physics in 1958. Upon graduation, he joined the Department of Physics, the Faculty of Science and Engineering, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Taking a leave of absence from the institute in 1961, Dr. Soga took his family with him on his first trip to the United States at the invitation of the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois. He came back to Japan after a two-year stay, but returned again in 1964 to finish the work he had started at Argonne, and again - this time for good - in 1965 accepting an offer from the Bartol Research Institute, at the time part of the Franklin Institute, in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. While he enjoyed research work, Dr. Soga longed also to work with and teach young people. So in 1968 he accepted a position in the Physics Department of WMU in Kalamazoo. In 1987, he assumed additional duties in the WMU Office of International Affairs as an advisor for Japanese relations. Fully embracing his adopted country, Dr. Soga became a U.S. citizen in 1978. He was truly a part of the WMU and Kalamazoo community, a regular at sporting events from university football to basketball to hockey to women's volleyball. He was also a long-time season ticketholder of the Kalamazoo Symphony and the Fontana Chamber Arts, and enjoyed numerous cultural and musical events.
Most of all, he was mentor and counselor to the successive generations of Japanese students who attended WMU and the other colleges around Kalamazoo. Every New Year, Dr. Soga would invite the Japanese students for a traditional meal. What began as a gathering of few students soon outgrew his home and necessitated renting a space each year - a testament to the success of his efforts to grow the exchange between the two countries.
The many Japanese students who studied at WMU and returned home form the core of the Kalamazoo-Kai Kalamazoo Society in Japan, a gathering of those who have a connection to the city and, in most cases, a personal bond with Dr. Soga. As Dr. Steve Covell, chairman of the WMU Department of Comparative Religion and founding director of the Soga Japan Center, wrote to Dr. Soga's children, "the Japanese alumni loved your father and mother so much that they wrote a song about him and Kalamazoo "Kalamazoo in Our Hearts" that they sing at all of their gatherings." Dr. Soga also was instrumental in the founding of the Battle Creek Japanese School which was formally recognized by the Japanese Ministry of Education in 1984. The K-12 school's primary mission is to serve the educational needs of the children of Japanese ex-pats who are in the United States temporarily so that these students can transition back smoothly into the Japanese school system. Dr. Soga's work for the Battle Creek school was illustrative of his community spirit that reached beyond the borders of Kalamazoo. The Japanese school was essential to the economic health of the neighboring city and the region, which was working to expand the presence of Japanese firms. In 2010, the Japan America Society of West Michigan in Battle Creek recognized Dr. Soga "for his outstanding lifetime achievements in fostering the cultural, educational and social ties between Japan and America communities in the West Michigan region." Dr. Soga retired from the Physics Department in 1993, becoming an emeritus professor, and retired from all of his duties at WMU in 1996. In 2005, the WMU Board of Trustees honored Dr. Soga by establishing the Michitoshi Soga Japan Center for research in Japanese studies. He called this a "wonderful honor," yet typical of his modesty, he felt "puzzled" to be recognized in this manner for his work. The university also established the Michitoshi Soga Presidential Scholarship for Japanese students. Dr. Soga's long years of service to U.S.-Japanese relations resulted in an honorary degree from Josai University in Tokyo in 2008. In 2010, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs awarded him the Foreign Minister's Commendation, a recognition bestowed to those for their "outstanding achievements in international fields, to acknowledge their contribution to the promotion of friendly relations between Japan and other countries."
In the fall of 2012, Dr. Soga was able to witness the fulfillment of his long-standing wish when WMU established a major in Japanese. As a further testament to the success of his vision, more students were enrolled as Japanese majors than any other language in the Department of World Languages and Literature this academic year. Dr. Soga is survived by his wife, Ryoko; his sons Michio and his wife Christine Hart of Princeton, New Jersey, Michiaki Aki and his wife Kimiko Yumoto of South Burlington, Vermont, and Michitaka Taka and his wife Sybrina of Seattle, Washington; his grandchildren Jason Hart, Sara Hart and her husband Maxime Turgeon, Brendan Hart, Michihiro Soga, Michiyuki Soga, Misako Soga, Michimi Kai Soga; and great-grandson Mathias Turgeon. A memorial service honoring Dr. Soga is planned for April 21. Details will be available from WMU at a later date. Private burial will take place at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be directed to the Soga Japan Center in support of the Michitoshi Soga Presidential Scholarship in memory of Dr. Soga. Donations can be made through the following website: www.mywmu.com/sogajapancenter for more information, please contact either Dr. Jeffrey Angles at / 269 387-3044 or Dr. Steve Covell at / 269 387-4365 at WMU. Please visit Dr. Soga's personalized webpage for online guestbook, or to leave a condolence.