Colorado grower Bob Sakata mourned
Celebrated Colorado grower Bob Sakata, 96, died June 7.
Sakata was born April 14, 1926, in San Jose, Calif., to Aki Nishimura and Mantaro Sakata, according to his obituary. Sakata's mother died of pneumonia, which left his father to raise 5-year-old Bob and three older siblings, the obituary said.
His father farmed a small plot of land near Centerville, Calif., but following the declaration of war against Japan, the U.S. government interned 120,000 Japanese Americans, including Sakata’s family. In 1942, Sakata and his family were sent to an internment camp in Topaz, Utah.
With assistance from his former high school teacher willing to vouch for his conduct and character, Sakata garnered an early release from the internment camp by working on a dairy farm located in Brighton, Colo.
In 1944, the dairyman loaned Sakata the money to purchase 40 acres of farmland in Brighton, which allowed his family to leave the internment camp and relocate to Colorado, according to the obituary.
Sakata married a local farmer’s daughter, Joanna Tokunaga, in 1956. The couple expanded Sakata Farms from 40 acres to over 3,000 acres producing sweet corn, broccoli, cabbage, onions and beans, the obituary said. Sakata's innovation in seed development and packaging changed the sweet corn industry in the 1980s with the introduction of Sakata Farms Gourmet Sweet Corn.
Sakata went on to win numerous honors in his farming career. In 1955, he was nominated by the Brighton Jaycees for the Outstanding Young Farmers of America award, the obituary said. About 14,000 young farmers were nominated, and Sakata was selected as one of only four national winners at a ceremony held in Pittsburgh, Pa.
In 1973, Sakata was also appointed by then-President Richard Nixon to the advisory board of the Commodity Credit Corporation, and was invited to the White House for an event honoring American agriculture.
Sakata and wife, Joanna, were inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame and Colorado Agriculture Hall of Fame. The couple also received the Colorado Proud Lifetime Achievement Award, hosted Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan, and, in 2004, were given the honor of visiting the emperor and empress in their private residence at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan, according to the obituary.
Sakata served on various boards and commissions, including the 27J school board, First National Bank of Englewood, Bank One Corporation, Cooperative Extension Advisory Board at Colorado State University, the Adams County Economic Development Board, the Colorado Food Safety Task Force, the National Federation of Beet Growers, the National Onion Association Board, the Japan American Society and local irrigation ditch boards.
Sakata helped lead a national capital campaign to build the National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism located in Washington, D.C., and attended the unveiling in 2000, according to the obituary. In 2021, he attended the grand opening of the Bob Sakata Education Campus located in Brighton.
"He was a man of many accomplishments, and his legacy of generosity, good humor, faith and family will live on in all he touched," the family shared in the obituary.
Sakata is survived by his wife, Joanna; son, Robert (Julie Kerr); daughters, Vicki and Lani (Don Dolifka); grandchildren David Dolifka and Madison Dolifka; and sister, Mitsie. He is preceded in death by both his parents, his brother, Harry, and sister, Fusie, according to the obituary.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Platte Valley Medical Center Foundation, with a note in the memo line saying, “In memory of Bob Sakata.” Checks can be mailed to 1600 Prairie Center Parkway, Brighton, CO 80601. Online donations can be made here.
