Shrewsbury – Harue (Oyama) Midtmoen, 93, formerly of Shrewsbury MA and New York City NY, passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at Brookdale Eddy Pond East in Auburn.
Harue is survived by her daughter Andrea Midori Midtmoen Fease and her husband Howard Roland Fease of Whitinsville MA; her step-daughter Karen Lee and her husband Roddy Lee of Walnut Creek CA; her niece Chie Seki of Kamakura Japan and step-niece Jessica Lee of Pinole CA; and her nephew Kiyoshi Oyama of Shinjuku Japan and step-nephew Adam Lee of Pittsburgh PA. She was predeceased by her husband of 26 years, Forrest Olson Midtmoen, who passed on December 20, 1987, and her brother Hiroshi Oyama, who passed on February 2, 2015.
Born in Tokyo Japan in 1930, she was the daughter of Takeshi Oyama and Chiyoko (Sase) Oyama. She graduated from Tokyo Women’s Christian College in Tokyo, then got her B.A. and took graduate courses from the University of Minnesota. She worked for Marubeni America Corp. in NYC for 35 years, achieving the position of Corporate Board Secretary, the first woman to do so, during her last 5 years.
Upon her retirement to Shrewsbury, she founded Paws for People in 2006, adopted as the Animal Facilitated Therapy program at the Cummins School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts in Grafton in 2009, which included coordinating animal visitation programs to nursing homes, hospitals and troubled youth facilities, and the Reading Education Assistance Dogs program in Shrewsbury where children improved their reading skills by reading to certified therapy dogs.
She was a valued volunteer and member of the MSPCA Leadership Circle, supporting programs that benefited animals in need. In 1999 she was recognized for this work as a “Hometown Hero” in Worcester Magazine, and in 2013 she received a Cummings School Exceptional Service Award for her work. She retired from this in 2020 when COVID caused these programs to end.
Harue was an astute businesswoman and a wonderful lady, kind, compassionate, and loved animals, especially cats. She enjoyed daily walks, cooking and baking, keeping up with world affairs, and especially loved classical music, which she shared with her husband Forrest who was a violist in the New York City Opera Orchestra. She learned to play piano and enjoyed playing classical music until recently.
We would like to thank the entire Brookdale Community, and Nurse Paulette and her team from VNA Hospice, for their kind, compassionate and above-and-beyond care and support.
There are no calling hours, and burial will be private in East Grand Forks Minnesota. For those who wish, donations in Harue’s name may be made to MSPCA Angell, Boston MA or Neady Cats No-Kill Shelter, Sterling MA.
Carr Funeral Home of Whitinsville assisted with arrangements.
