Eric Uyetake's Obituary
Eric Toshio Uyetake passed peacefully into eternity on March 10, 2024—his 73rd birthday. Until his last moment, Eric was doing what we all know he did best—working hard to make sure his beloved wife, Judy, their home, and the family were well taken care of.
Eric was always a hard worker—there was no task too small that he didn’t make sure to take care of. While he was, admittedly, a “measure once; cut twice” (and then add duct tape as needed) kind of guy, he was up for any task added to his Honey-Do list. He was also a dedicated provider. There was no job too menial that he wasn’t willing to take to make sure his family was well provided for. He will always be remembered as a dedicated provider and hard worker.
Born March 10, 1951, just before his twin brother Gregg, in Honolulu, Hawaii, his life journey began. He was raised in Honolulu with his brother and older sister, Jeanne. He graduated from Mid Pacific Institute and went on to get his bachelor’s degree from the University of Hawaii. Though he’s lived in other states since then, his heart was always in Hawaii. He never turned down a chance to wear a Hawaiian shirt, and he did a happy dance when Hawaiian Brothers opened in Tulsa.
When Eric met the love of his life, Judy, he was a classic beach bum—Jesus-loving, long haired, barefooted, and playing bass guitar. And when his independent, free-spirited girlfriend started talking about moving off the island, he promptly proposed to insure they would always be together.
Eric and Judy were married August 1, 1976, and by 1978, their first daughter Joy was born. After just a couple years of island life as a family, it was time to move somewhere more affordable, and their good friends who had recently moved to Michigan, found Eric a job and a house. So he packed up his family and headed into the shocking cold of the midwest winters. Eric worked as a cost accountant providing for his family as his next two children, Evan and Faith were born. The family spent most of their summers camping with friends or traveling to visit extended family for holidays. In Michigan, Eric also discovered his love for balloon art, so he created a side hustle as Eric the Balloonman doing balloon animals for birthday parties, company picnics, and other events.
In 1997, God called Eric and Judy to Rhema Bible Training Center to earn their degree in ministry. Here they developed friendships with people from around the world and graduated in the spring of 1999. Eric the Balloonman became a regular at El Chicos, and Eric’s Hawaiian heart led him to get a boat and lake house on Tenkiller Lake where decades of family and friend memories were made during the hot Oklahoma summers.
As all three kids married and began having children, Eric couldn’t have been prouder as he began sporting his new grandpa title—Bepa. Eric’s free time began filling with teaching his grandsons how to fish, playing keyboard while the kids danced in the living room, and establishing a lifelong family tradition of reading the Christmas story to the family before opening presents each year. At family gatherings, his favorite dad joke while serving himself food was “Bacon is my favorite vegetable.” And when he wasn’t with family, he and Judy filled their time playing Bunco with friends, riding their tandem bike around the neighborhood, and hosting elaborate Christmas parties.
Eric is predeceased by his parents Thomas and Hazel and his brother Gregg. He is survived by many family members who are still reeling at the suddenness of this all: wife Judy, daughter Joy (Isaac); son Evan (Megan); and daughter Faith (Greg), and grandkids—Andie, Maddie, Autumn, Ethan, Nate, Ollie, Ellie, and Rocky; sister Jeanne.
Eric’s family would like to express their sincere gratitude at the overwhelming response of love, prayers, and support from family and friends from across the country and around the world. Just as Joshua and Aaron held Moses’s arms up at his time of greatest need, our community has kept all of us upright when the unthinkable happened so suddenly. “Thank you" just isn’t sufficient to express what our hearts are feeling, but it is all we can humbly offer. Thank you to all for helping us celebrate and honor our strong and dedicated husband, father, friend, and son of God.
Eric’s Celebration (Ho’olaule’a) of Life will be held on Thursday, March 14th at 1:00 pm at Rhema Bible Church’s Chapel. Light refreshments will be served after. If you would like to send flowers, the family requests that they be Hawaiian themed or in the form of a lei to honor Eric’s love for the island. For those who would like to contribute financially to his legacy, go to gofund.me/a904acc8. Thank you.
Pallbearers: Evan Uyetake, Nathan Uyetake, Ethan Uyetake, Issac Abad, Greg Anderson, Rocky Anderson
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