COMMUNITY
Obituaries
Sayonara JOHN ANDREW “ANDY” SMITH ‘86 was born on November 3, 1968 in Topeka, Kansas to seminary students Ed and Sharon Smith. Soon thereafter, Ed and Sharon were appointed as missionaries to serve in Japan. His first home was in Chofu, only a few blocks away from ASIJ. As a toddler he would make friends by calling out to the Japanese kids he would see out his window. His time there was short, though, and soon his family moved to Tokushima where they were, for a short while, the only foreigners in the prefecture. Andy entered Kindergarten where he was treated just like everyone else. The next year, he entered Showa Primary School. Eventually, the Smiths moved back to the same home in Chofu. Andy started school at ASIJ in the 4th grade and soon began making friends again. His best friends throughout his life were mainly those who shared his bilingual abilities. He attended Tokorozawa Christian Church with his family and continued by himself when they moved to their next church assignment. He enjoyed engaging with the youth group and attending the national youth retreat at the Baptist camp, Amagi Sanso on Izu. Andy loved the spotlight. Besides being in ASIJ’s choir and vocal ensemble, he loved TV. Often, during breaks from high school, he would go downtown to the TV studios just to be caught on camera behind the presenters outside the picture window in the background. He then got bit by the acting bug. He first enjoyed being an extra in countless productions. Then he was offered speaking roles. He had big parts and even a lead role in various NHK series. He was also in three Godzilla movies. After High School, Andy attended Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, Oklahoma. During this time, he spent a year studying abroad, back in Japan, at Seinan Gakuin in Fukuoka. He was the de facto leader of the international students, primarily because of his Japanese language abilities. But his time at Seinan Gakuin produced more than leadership qualities. It was there he met his future wife, Mina. After his year in Fukuoka, he returned to Oklahoma, finished his degree, and immediately returned to his favorite place, Tokyo. He continued various TV roles, including one of the notorious Japanese games shows, TV Champion. It shouldn’t be a surprise that he beat out 39 others to gain the title, The Most Japanese Foreigner. Andy realized that his television career was probably not sustainable so he found a job working for Softbank Magazine where he wrote a
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THE AMERICAN SCHOOL IN JAPAN