Sei Mandai Pramenko of Milwaukee died Dec. 18, 2008, at age 77.
She was born Aug. 28, 1931, in Kobe, Japan, to the late Shigeno and Tamao Mandai. She was the youngest of seven children and the daughter of an engineer. She worked as a kindergarten teacher in Japan for four years before deciding to come to the United States to study English and education.
She arrived in 1956 and lived with Mr. and Mrs. Donald Hickman. Through mutual friends, she met her husband, Eugene Pramenko, and married him on Dec. 18, 1960.
In Japan, she had eight years of private schooling in the Japanese tea ceremony and was a certified teacher. Her tea ceremony name, given in recognition for having successfully completed the extensive instructions, was Sei Sei An Seiho. Patience, calmness and gracefulness describe the qualities she demonstrated whenever she performed the ceremony.
She studied ikebana (Japanese flower arranging) for seven years and attended a music school where she learned to play the koto, or Japanese harp. She also studied Japanese dancing and attended a European cooking school in Japan. She was an expert in origami, the art of paper folding and did numerous trainings and demonstrations throughout the Milwaukee area over the years.
She worked as an independent translator and interpreter of the Japanese language and culture locally for many years and with Berlitz Language Schools, GE Medical Systems, Harley Davidson and SC Johnson.
She also remained actively involved with Ikebana International Chapter 22 for many years and enjoyed flower arranging. She was also a member of the Japanese American Citizen's League and a long-time member of Underwood Memorial Baptist Church in Wauwatosa.
She is survived by her children, William (Ellen), Mei (Bruce) Cobb, Frederick (Gina) and Alexander (Jennifer); 10 grandchildren; brother, Tatsuo Mandai; sister, Toshi Shigeta; other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her sister, Masa Sagara.
Memorial service of remembrance and thanksgiving will be held at Underwood Memorial Baptist Church on Saturday, March 21, at 2 p.m.
Memorials are suggested to Underwood Memorial Baptist Church, 1916 N. Wauwatosa Ave., Wauwatosa, WI 53213.
Schmidt & Bartelt Funeral and Cremation Services handled the arrangements.
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