Cindy Murakami was my wife and partner for over 20 years. A wonderful mother and person, she set an example for all to follow. Please take a minute to meet her, to know her as I know her.

Born on August 18, 1953 in Turlock, California, Cindy was one of Bob and Shirley Smith’s four children: Doug, Lester, Cindy, and Sherri. She grew up in the heart of California, but in her early twenties, the desire to move elsewhere struck her. So she packed her bags and headed to Hawaii with her five-year-old son, Josh. That’s where she met me.

I’ll never forget the day we met. Cindy came into the car dealership where I worked and wanted to purchase a VW convertible, the perfect car for Hawaii and for her. My job was to arrange the financing. It took a little time to do this, and through the process, I had the opportunity to get to know Cindy. Even though it took every penny she had for a down payment, she was determined to have this car. It was as if she knew it was right.

Turns out, it was right. After we completed the sale, I offered to take her to dinner, and the rest is history….

A year later we married, and shortly thereafter, she gave birth to our son, Brody. Cindy adored children and devoted herself to being a tremendous mother. But Cindy had so much love to give. After a while, she accepted a position as a Pre-K teacher in a private school in Hawaii. During her time teaching, she came to the conclusion that we should have another child – a daughter.

Cindy wasn’t exactly subtle about her desire either. She often brought this beautiful little Korean girl home with her. Cindy thought the girl, the daughter of a fellow teacher, would soften me to the idea that we really needed one more child. In her heart, she was set on adoption because if we adopted, we would be guaranteed a little girl. (Seems we had enough boys!)

Well, Cindy’s plan worked. Before I knew it, we’d started the adoption process, and a year later, this amazing little girl arrived from Korea. Our new daughter came to us as Seung Hye Cho. We named her Chelsea Seung Hye Murakami.

Cindy was blessed with numerous talents and interests and a stockpile of energy to go along with them. She dressed impeccably, hosted parties and events graciously, and had a great eye for decorating. One of her passions included a love of the health and nutrition industry. When we met, Cindy had been working in a health food restaurant and had developed a gift for cooking delicious healthy meals. After Chelsea arrived, we purchased a health food store and sandwich bar in Hawaii. We operated this for over a year and eventually turned it into a restaurant, serving only healthy and nutritious foods. Cindy had an incredible knack for taking a conventional recipe and creating a mouth-watering healthy version. She also made the best-tasting healthy apple pie I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating.

Ultimately, we sold the restaurant, and Cindy chose to work as the head chef of an exclusive health spa in Hawaii. This spa earned a reputation for catering to movie stars, the mega-rich, etc., and Cindy had the job of creating healthy appealing cuisine for the guests. At the time of her passing, Cindy was working on another dream of hers -- compiling some of her best recipes into a cookbook. (It’s a dream I plan to see fulfilled.)

A few years later, some interesting business ventures drew us away from Hawaii to Seattle, Washington. Here, as a family, we connected with our local church, and Cindy pursued another of her passions – volunteering. She spent hours helping others at the church and in the community, and eventually, Cindy’s compassion led her to open our own home to a string of people in need. We cared for foreign exchange students, homeless and pregnant teens, and even an occasional foster child. I remember, at one point, ten people lived under our roof. But through it all, my wife exuded strength and joy and always managed to put our relationship first. She even found time to run for the Mrs. America pageant and represented our community in the Mrs. Washington pageant.

One of the things I loved most about Cindy was that she had her life’s priorities in order; she loved God and her family, and she took great care of herself. She really “walked her talk.” And she did it with such grace and charm – always smiling, always offering a kind word to friend or stranger. She made me so proud.

In 1997, we escaped the cold dampness of the Pacific Northwest and moved to the sunny climes of Florida. Here in Tampa, we immediately involved ourselves with a local church, and Cindy started volunteering in every area. Brody and Chelsea attended school in the area while Josh studied at Oral Robert's University in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

In the fall of 1998, we planned to move to Tulsa be near our boys. Brody, our youngest son, had chosen to attend a private high school in Tulsa, and we wanted to be closer to support him though his last years of high school. Additionally, the move would enable me to pursue one of my goals –to attend a bible college for a year.

Really, when I think about it though, I believe the reason Cindy wanted to move was because she missed her boys. I really think she just wanted an excuse to live near them, to be the mother they loved having around. Cindy loved her children dearly, and it showed in the way they were raised. All the children showed tremendous respect and love for their mother.

So, we made the decision to go to Tulsa despite the fact that we would have to leave the warmth of Florida for a year or so. We thought it was a temporary move – one that we could live with. But sadly, we never got the opportunity.

On November 16, 1998 Cindy and Chelsea were killed in a car crash in Tampa, Florida.