Obituary of Yaeko Harada Fawley

Yaeko Harada Fawley was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1930, the daughter of the late Shungo Harada, M.D., and Fumi Harada. She passed away on February 21, 2021, in Columbia, South Carolina, after a valiant battle against cancer.

Mrs. Fawley is survived by her daughters and sons-in-law, Shirley Fawley, Ph.D., Linda Fawley, Debra Fawley Grice (Robbie), and Sandra Fawley Byrd (David), along with her granddaughters, whom she loved dearly, Blakely Radford (Bryson) and Merrell Grice. She was predeceased by her husband of seventy years, Jerry Fawley, whom she met while a student at Otsuma Women’s University, as well as her brothers, Kunio Harada, Tashihiko Harada, M.D., and Yukio Harada of Tokyo, Japan, and sister Toshiko Nayawata of Bangkok, Thailand.

An incredible and loving mother, homemaker, life-long learner, and greatly admired friend and neighbor, Mrs. Fawley enjoyed reading, attending academic and technology classes to broaden her horizons, indoor gardening, sewing, swimming, walking, and traveling. Nothing, however, made her happier than spending time with her family and ensuring that they were well taken care of. Throughout her husband’s military career, Mrs. Fawley always made certain that the many houses in which the family lived, whether in Europe or the United States, were truly “homes” and not simply residences.

A private graveside service will be held next week. In the interim, the family respectfully requests prayer. They also wish to extend deep appreciation to the team of physicians and other medical professionals at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and the South Carolina Oncology Center for the compassionate treatment of Mrs. Fawley over the past one and a half years. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital/ALSAC, St. Jude Place, Memphis, Tennessee 38105, an organization Mrs. Fawley believed in and supported, or to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center via the online memorial donation form.