Obituary of Kentaro Ikeda

Kentaro Ikeda, Longtime resident of Larchmont and well know tea importer passed away suddenly at his home on November 6, 2011. He was 92 years old. Kentaro was the oldest son of Kenzo Ikeda who was the first man to bring Japanese green tea to the US market while representing Japan at the Expo in St. Louis in 1918. After seeing the US on that trip he decided to educate his sons here. Kentaro entered the Lawrenceville Preparatory School in NJ in 1938. He then went onto Princeton University and graduated in the class of 1944. After teaching Japanese language for nine years at Yale University, Kentaro decided to follow in his father's footsteps. He Imported Tea for US market and supplied major packers including Lipton Tea ,Tetley Tea and Nestle tea companies. Kentaro earned a reputation for being an extremely honest and dedicated as well as respected and recognized his contribution to the tea industry. He is survived by his beloved wife Yoko Ikeda (professionally known as: Young Yang Chung) a well-known writer and textile historian who established Embroidery Museum and holds PHD from NYU.