Barbara Gail (Yoshida) Berthiaume passed away peacefully on October 18, 2024, aged 79, at her home in Port Ludlow surrounded by family and friends. She was born on June 16, 1945 to Michiko (Sagami) and Tadao Yoshida in Havre, Montana, shortly after they left the Minidoka incarceration camp for Japanese Americans. She was raised in the small farming community of Bowmont, Idaho. After graduating from the University of Idaho, she moved to Seattle, where she earned her Masters of Social Work from the University of Washington and met her husband, Ed Berthiaume. Together they raised a family while traveling the world, living in France, Singapore, and England, before settling back to the Pacific Northwest.
Barbara possessed boundless energy and compassion, which she used to help those in her community wherever she lived. In London she had a private counseling practice, conducted transition training for international families and Fulbright Scholars, and served on the board for International Families in Global Transition. In Washington she volunteered for the PSO Bluebills, a non-profit organization in Jefferson County, raised money for Dove House Advocacy Services, and served on the boards for the Japanese American Citizens League and the Hospice Foundation For Jefferson Healthcare. In her personal life she was known to offer reassuring counsel to friends during difficult times.
Barbara was also a passionate advocate for preserving the legacy of the 442nd regimental combat team, an all Japanese American infantry unit in World War II. She was especially committed to honoring her uncle, Yohei Sagami, the first Nisei killed in action in France. Through a series of public lectures and a memorial installed in Bruyeres, France, Barbara worked to ensure the story of the 442nd will not be forgotten.
She is survived by her husband, Ed, her two children, Christopher and Jennifer, her two grandchildren, Alice and Kai, and her siblings, Ann Costello, David Yoshida, and Bruce Yoshida.
A memorial will be held for family and friends on November 17 at the Bay Club in Port Ludlow. In lieu of Koden, donations may be made to Dove House Advocacy Services of Port Townsend.
