1936
Takako
2014
Takako Bramlett
November 27, 1936 — February 15, 2014
Takako Kamio Bramlett, age 77 of New London, CT., passed away peacefully, February 15, 2014. Private Burial will be in Amarillo with a memorial service to be held 10:00 AM, Monday April 14, 2014, at Schooler Funeral Home Brentwood Chapel, 4100 S. Georgia St.; Amarillo, TX.
Takoka was born in Tokyo, Japan on November 27, 1936 the daughter of Shosaku Kamio and Shizuka Matsuzaki Kamio.
She completed Barber College in Tokyo and was a barber on the Tachikawa Air Force Base in the city of Tachikawa, the western part of Tokyo, where she met her husband-to-be, Jackie Glenn Bramlett of Mineral Wells, TX. They were married in a Japanese ceremony before coming to reside in the US. They eventually settled in Amarillo, where Takoka resided for 48 years.
She obtained her Barber License in the United States with the help of her employer and friend, Orville Clevenger, and began her 41 year career in Amarillo as a barber. She eventually obtained her own shop, Mayco Barber Shop, in the Mayco Shopping Center on Western Street in Amarillo. She later built a three store commercial building to the west Mayco Shopping Center. Her Barber Shop had an atmosphere that was uniquely her own. She had pictures of Japan lining the walls, and a desk and toys for children to study and/or play with while they waited their turn. Takoka was known for her generosity and integrity. Parents dropped their children off with money for their haircut, and kids knew that they would get a handful of bubble gum and money for a coke from Takoko’s coke machine while they waited. Clients, mostly men, knew that a haircut also included a massage on the shoulders and head.
Even though Takoka had dropped out of school to begin Barber College, she built a culture of learning in her home. She always took free or cheap English classes to improve her English. When she had learned all she could from these, she took auto mechanics classes for women and beginning computer classes at Amarillo College. She also earned her high school diploma through a correspondence school, which inspired another friend to do the same. She encouraged her daughters to pursue learning by signing them up for everything from tennis to piano lessons to sewing classes. Summers were never idle.
She was predeceased by her parents and a brother Minoru Kamio.
Takoka is survived by daughter Kimiko Bessire and her husband Andrew of Niantic, CT., and daughter Kristi Bramlett of Dallas; grandchildren Abigail and Zachary Bessire; sisters Yoko Nakamura, Kinuko Kato, Kimiko Sawai and brother’s Koje Kamio and Markoto Kamio and their families.
Memorial contributions may be directed to American Diabetes Association; 8008 Slide Road; Suite 12-A; Lubbock, TX. 79424
Family will receive guests at 3:30 p.m., on Sunday April 13, 2014
Takoka was born in Tokyo, Japan on November 27, 1936 the daughter of Shosaku Kamio and Shizuka Matsuzaki Kamio.
She completed Barber College in Tokyo and was a barber on the Tachikawa Air Force Base in the city of Tachikawa, the western part of Tokyo, where she met her husband-to-be, Jackie Glenn Bramlett of Mineral Wells, TX. They were married in a Japanese ceremony before coming to reside in the US. They eventually settled in Amarillo, where Takoka resided for 48 years.
She obtained her Barber License in the United States with the help of her employer and friend, Orville Clevenger, and began her 41 year career in Amarillo as a barber. She eventually obtained her own shop, Mayco Barber Shop, in the Mayco Shopping Center on Western Street in Amarillo. She later built a three store commercial building to the west Mayco Shopping Center. Her Barber Shop had an atmosphere that was uniquely her own. She had pictures of Japan lining the walls, and a desk and toys for children to study and/or play with while they waited their turn. Takoka was known for her generosity and integrity. Parents dropped their children off with money for their haircut, and kids knew that they would get a handful of bubble gum and money for a coke from Takoko’s coke machine while they waited. Clients, mostly men, knew that a haircut also included a massage on the shoulders and head.
Even though Takoka had dropped out of school to begin Barber College, she built a culture of learning in her home. She always took free or cheap English classes to improve her English. When she had learned all she could from these, she took auto mechanics classes for women and beginning computer classes at Amarillo College. She also earned her high school diploma through a correspondence school, which inspired another friend to do the same. She encouraged her daughters to pursue learning by signing them up for everything from tennis to piano lessons to sewing classes. Summers were never idle.
She was predeceased by her parents and a brother Minoru Kamio.
Takoka is survived by daughter Kimiko Bessire and her husband Andrew of Niantic, CT., and daughter Kristi Bramlett of Dallas; grandchildren Abigail and Zachary Bessire; sisters Yoko Nakamura, Kinuko Kato, Kimiko Sawai and brother’s Koje Kamio and Markoto Kamio and their families.
Memorial contributions may be directed to American Diabetes Association; 8008 Slide Road; Suite 12-A; Lubbock, TX. 79424
Family will receive guests at 3:30 p.m., on Sunday April 13, 2014
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