Name/Title
Kay Matsuda - Mermaid's Domain - The SequoiasDescription
Born in the northern rural area of the Big Island of Hawaii, Kay grew up on a sugar cane plantation. A trained nurse, she came to San Francisco in 1949–the only one of her six siblings who emigrated to the mainland–and worked for many years at St. Francis Hospital.
After over sixty years of marriage, Kay asserts, “The three things I live by are trust, respect, and responsibility.” She believes deeply in keeping life simple. At the Sequoias, this articulate and independent 90-year-old goes up to the roof at dawn to view “nature’s gallery” and works out at the gym. She also draws, paints or thinks about her art daily.
May drew nothing other than stick figures before she took art lessons from a resident artist at the Sequoias and then joined the AWE class. Now, she says, “When I finish my drawing or painting, I look at it and say, ‘Now, did I do this?’ It’s something I created and it’s a moment I treasure.”
One of Kay’s art projects has included a series of drawings depicting her family history, accompanied by stories to pass on to her nieces, nephews and grand-nephews.
