SPOKANE, Wash. — Countless visitors to Manito Park’s Japanese gardens have admired the bonsai, but likely few know how those trees came to be here. It’s just one contribution made by the Kawaguchi family to the Spokane region. Friday Matsutaro and Hatsume Kawaguchi, so-called “forgotten members of our community,” were honored with the Fairmount Memorial Association’s 35th monument.
The monument was also created and dedicated through the help of the Spokane Regional Law Enforcement Museum, Spokane Historical Monuments Committee, Jonas Babcock Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution and The Westerners, Spokane Corral.
When Ty Brown, an author and historian, heard about the Kawaguchi family, he couldn’t get it out of his heart. So he worked with other preservationists and the couple’s eldest daughter Ellen to document their story and carve their legacy into a lasting tribute…