Ayako Kondo Cook, known as "Kay" to her American friends, was born July 5, 1930 in Nagano Prefecture, Japan, a place better known to Westerners as the home of the 1998 Winter Olympics. Her journey, which surely could never have been imagined by her young self, ended 84 years later on August 22, 2014 in Oklahoma City, a place that could not have been more different than Nagano, but one she was proud to call home. In a strange but somehow appropriate symmetry, her life ended as it had begun, in the Year of the Horse, which recurs in 12-year cycles in the Chinese and Japanese zodiac. Horse-Year people are known for their beauty and independent nature, and no one would have had any difficulty identifying Ayako as a Horse-Year woman, beautiful and headstrong from the time she was a child. People born in the Year of the Horse are also said to be brave and adventurous, and Ayako certainly had those traits in spades. On a trip to Tokyo to visit one of her sisters, Ayako met and married, in short order, an American service man from Oklahoma named Carl Cook. At 19, she turned heads wherever she went; doubtless, Carl knew he had better act quickly. Thus began Ayako's odyssey. With Carl, she had four children: Jeanette, Marilyn, Tommie and Shirley. One might think that raising four children would be too time-consuming for much else, but Ayako was the ultimate multi-tasker. In a typical day, she might cook an American dinner of beans and cornbread for her husband (whose Oklahoma palate could not be considered, even charitably, as broad), while simultaneously making a Japanese dinner for herself and her children; make a pattern for a daughter's dress, then sew that same dress in meticulous fashion; and, in her "free" time, work on one of the many handicrafts at which she was so adept. (Peggy Lee's rendition of "I'm a Woman" could have been written about our mom-- http://letras.mus.br/peggy-lee/425253/) Ayako became a U.S. citizen while still in her 20's, and exercised the privileges of citizenship throughout her life. Even when illness made it impractical to vote in person, she dutifully sent in her absentee ballot, and one of her favorite past-times, apart from watching the Thunder (about whom she was absolutely rabid), was telling the talking heads on cable TV how misguided they were (especially if they were on Fox News). Later, when her children had grown, Ayako decided to work outside the home and in quick order became a R.N., obtaining her nursing degree at what is now known as Rose State College. Until her retirement, Ayako worked at many of the hospitals in the metro area. Actually, "retirement" would be a misnomer; Ayako simply worked at other things: as selfless caregiver to her granddaughter Catherine; private-duty nurse to her husband Carl in his last years; and short-order cook to her family, specializing in the Japanese cuisine that her children knew could always be had on request. Mom's final challenge was her own health and, although she fought her battle with cancer and autoimmune disease longer than many wars are fought, in the end her fierce will to live was simply not enough. But, oh, how hard she fought! Ayako was preceded in death by her father, Masao Kondo, and mother, Sada Sakai, as well as her sister, Kiyomi Kondo, brothers Shoichi Kondo, Masato Kondo and Norito Kondo, and her husband, Carl Cook. She is survived by her daughter Jeanette Timmons and granddaughter Catherine Quinlan; daughter Marilyn Peek, her husband Jeff Peek, and grandson Mike Peek; son Tommie Cook, his wife Pauline Cook, and grandchildren Thomas (Cook) Rahbar, Miranda Carter, and Douglas Cook; and daughter Shirley Downen, her husband Allyn Downen and granddaughter Ashley Pelter; sisters Misako Nakamura of Tokyo, Japan, and Ryouko Otake ofChiba, Japan, sister-in-law Kohama Kondo of Kurashina, Nagano-ken, Japan, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. She is also survived by 10 great-grandchildren, who are to be given condolences that they will not remember this remarkable woman. The family would like to express their appreciation to Dr. Brian Geister and the staff at the Integris Cancer Institute for their care and compassion, most especially Jamie Nettleton and Leslie Settle. Private family services will be held at Becker-Rabon Funeral Home Chapel in Lawton, Oklahoma, on Thursday, August 28, 2014, with burial to follow at the Post Cemetery on Fort Sill, where Ayako will finally rejoin her beloved Carl. We love you every day, Momand now we will miss you every day.