I am deeply saddened to learn of the death of
Elder Rikuo Toma. My association with him goes back to October of 1965 when we
entered the Mission Home in Salt Lake City. Of the twelve elders in our
group, Elder Toma was the only Nihonjin, but that's not the reason we were
all attracted to him. His friendly and outgoing personality made it a joy
to
be around him and his Christ-like manner endeared him to each one of us.
As good fortune would have it, when our first assignments were given out by
Pres. Komatsu, Elder Toma and I were sent to Nagoya (Elder Toma was Elder
Fairbanks companion and I was Elder Anderson's companion). Although Elder
Toma and I were "greenies" together in Nagoya, his fluency with the
language
and his dedication to the work caused me to look up to him and admire him
in
so many ways. I will never forget his concern for me during my first couple
of months in Japan. He helped me get over my initial culture shock and he
was a big factor in helping to change my attitude about the food.
One day my companion and I were street contacting and Elder Toma and Elder
Fairbanks rode by us on their bicycle built for two. We waved to them as
they passed by. A few minutes later they passed us again going the opposite
direction. Something Elder Fairbanks had eaten hadn't agreed with him and
he
was peddling as fast as he could to get back to the branch. Poor Elder Toma
(whose legs were about twice as short as Elder Fairbanks') was hanging on
for dear life to the handle bars and he was doing his best to keep his feet
out of the way of the peddles as they rapidly spun around. The sight of
those two missionaries speeding down the road on that bicycle built for two
must have put a grin on the faces of everyone they passed by.
Following three months in Nagoya, Elder Toma and I were both transferred.
Elder Toma went south and I went north to Hokkaido. Although we went
opposite directions, in my heart I had a feeling that our paths would cross
again.
Several months passed by and I was transferred to Tokyo South Branch. The
significant thing about that transfer was that is was the first time that I
had worked in a branch that also included sister missionaries. I was
surprised to learn that one of the sister missionaries was from Okinawa and
she was "engaged" to Elder Toma. Like Elder Toma, she had a wonderful
personality and, even though our association was limited, I thoroughly
enjoyed getting to know her.
As I recall, it was the day following New Year's Day that I was notified
that I was being transferred from Tokyo to Yamagata. The thought of going
north in the middle of the winter was disheartening, but my attitude
quickly
changed when I learned that my new companion was going to be Elder Toma!
Arriving in Yamagata, I was pleased to be reunited with Elder Toma and was
not surprised when I found out that he had been called to be the Branch
President of the Yamagata Branch. Tithing settlement was upon us, and as
the
Branch Clerk, I assisted him in taking care of what seemed like an
overwhelming task. Always the optimist, Elder Toma led the way and I
followed - and somehow we completed the task. On the positive side, when we
went to church the following Sunday, we knew the names of everyone of the
members and our greatest challenge was simply putting those names with the
right faces.
While we were serving together in Yamagata, Elder Toma received a small
package in the mail from his mother in Okinawa. The package contained an
audio tape which Elder Toma shared with me a few days later. On the tape
his
mother had recounted the events surrounding her conversion to the Church.
It
was both fascinating and inspiring to hear about the things that happened
to
her and her small family during the final months of WWII. Elder Toma and
his
sister were just infants when the American forces landed on Okinawa. Their
family survived their frightening experience as refugees and soon after the
war was over Sister Toma began her quest to find the true church. It was
wonderful to hear her tell about her conversion and the conversion that
followed of her husband and children. I was so thankful to have been able
to
gain this special insight into Elder Toma's family.
One afternoon following the church services at the Branch, Elder Toma and I
were in the process of wrapping up our Branch business. That morning it had
snowed and the temperature was well below freezing. Huddled close to the
heater to keep warm, Elder Toma turned to me and said that he thought that
it was time to go proselyting. So we knelt in prayer and humbly prayed that
the Lord would help us find a family to teach. As we stood up we both
experienced a good feeling and I knew that Elder Toma had been right. We
gathered up our scriptures and proselyting materials, put on our overcoats
and gloves, and lastly we put on our rubber boots. Dressed as warmly as
possible, we left the Branch and walked some distance to a new area and
began going house-to-house contacting. At practically every house we went
to
we had the doors slammed in our faces! Neither one of us had ever
experienced anything like that before (it's just not normal for the
Japanese
to be so impolite - later we learned that the Jehovah witnesses had been in
that area and obviously they hadn't made a very good impression).
Undaunted,
we continued on but then it started to rain. Instead of the rain coming
straight down, the wind was gusting and blew the rain sideways. The result
was that our umbrellas were not very effective and we got soaked to the
skin. When we finally made it back to our original starting point,
afternoon
had become evening and we stood there on the street corner under a lamp
post
discouraged, wet and shivering. I said to Elder Toma that I thought that we
ought to go back to the Branch but he reminded me of how we felt when we
had
prayed. And then he said something to me that I have never forgotten: "It
has been my experience that whenever things get tough, the Lord always has
something good waiting for you if you will just hang in there and not give
up." Encouraged by Elder Toma's choice thoughts, we forged ahead. As we
walked across the street, a girl on a motorcycle pulled up next to her
home.
We approached her and she expressed some interest in hearing our message;
however, she wouldn't let us in her home. We just stood out there in the
rain and tried to share our message with her. We were not successful in
getting a return appointment, but at least we had gotten to talk to someone
and that gave us the encouragement we needed to continue on. Thank goodness
that we did. At the next house we went to we walked up the path to the
front
door and were greeted by a lady who immediately invited us into her home.
Introducing us to her husband and son, she said that she had been expecting
us and was most anxious to hear our message. It was our privilege to teach
this wonderful family (they were later baptized) and that night as we made
our way back to the Branch we literally floated on air. Our prayers had
been
answered and we knew it.
The three months that we served together as companions was one of the
highlights of my mission. Throughout that time, I think that every letter
that Elder Toma wrote to Pres. Komatsu contained the phrase: "Elder
Poppleton should be a senior companion." When we were both transferred, he
got his wish and I became a senior companion in the Tokyo East Branch. When
we went to the eki on the day of our departure from Yamagata, the Branch
members came out in mass to say goodbye to Elder Toma - their beloved
Branch
President. As the train pulled away from the eki, Elder Toma cried and I
realized then that even though he was happy for me, he didn't want to leave
Yamagata. He loved the members and our investigators so much.
As we reached the two-year mark, I was serving in Fukuoka. The phone rang
one morning and transfers were announced. In fulfillment of feelings I had
experienced at the very beginning of my mission, I was being transferred to
Naha, Okinawa. When I arrived in Okinawa, I was so pleased at the events
that soon followed. Our maid was Sister Toma and she treated all of the
missionaries like her sons. To me, she was like a second mother and I
cherished the time that I was able to spend with her during the final six
months of my mission. Shortly after I arrived in Okinawa, Elder Toma was
released from his mission and he returned home. About that same time, his
finance returned home form her mission. If my memory serves me correctly,
they were married in December and that was such a happy and joyous
occasion.
Even now, I still can't believe that I was blessed to be able to be there
to
witness that special event. They were so happy to finally be together. A
short time later they were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple and I know that
that will be together forever.
Following Elder Toma's graduation from BYU, he and his family moved back to
Japan. 1n 1972, the Army sent me to Korea and while I was stationed there
my
wife and I were able to take a trip to Japan. While we were in Tokyo we had
the good fortune of going to Elder Toma's home and having dinner with him
and his family. His mother was living with them at that time and so it was
extra special to get to see her again too.
A few years later when my son was born, I wanted to give him a Japanese
name. It didn't take me long to figure out that if I was going to do that
that the name should have a special meaning or significance. My thoughts
quickly turned to Elder Toma and I considered naming my son Rikuo. But then
the thought struck me that that name might be too difficult to pronounce.
So
I discussed this with my wife and we finally decided to name our son: Scott
Toma Poppleton.
Several years ago when Elder Toma's daughter got married in the Salt Lake
Temple, he contacted me and invited me and my family to have dinner with
his
family and to attend the wedding reception. I have such fond memories of
those events. My only regret was that my son was in California and unable
to
be with us at that time. Although me son never got to meet his namesake, I
have told him so much about Elder Toma that I'm sure he must feel like he
knows him. The important thing for me, however, is that I hope that Scott
will always remember Elder Toma, what it was that he believed and stood
for,
and that he will try to live his life in a way that would make Elder Toma
proud of him.
My love for Elder Toma is very strong and my thoughts and prayers are with
Elder Toma's dear wife and children. Perhaps they will take comfort in
knowing that my wife and I have just accepted a call to serve in the
Oklahoma Oklahoma City Mission. As a full time missionary once again, I
will
always remember the influence that Elder Toma had on my life and the
lessons
he taught me. I know that by following his stellar example that my wife and
I will be an influence for good among the young LDS servicemen and women we
will be working with at Ft. Sill. Perhaps in the years to come, other
missions will follow and I hope someday that the Lord will once again allow
me the privilege of serving as a missionary in Japan and Okinawa.
Sincerely,
Elder Gary S. Poppleton
NFEM 1965-1968
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