Setsuko Faith Yim, of Princeton, NJ, passed away peacefully on August 20, 2023, at age 90.
Faith was born in Raymond, Alberta (Canada), on February 10, 1933, to Ishimatsu and Mitsue Sugimoto, who had emigrated from Nagoya, Japan. Growing up on her parents’ wheat farm, she attended the Bonnie View School, a one-room schoolhouse, and Raymond High School. It was at the University of Washington (Seattle) where she met her future husband, Woongsoon Michael Yim, graduating with a bachelor of fine arts degree. She later obtained a master of library science degree from Simmons College (Boston) and did graduate work in art history at Princeton University.
Faith worked as an illustrator in Boston and then as a substitute teacher in the Princeton Regional School system while raising her four children. She returned to work full time at the Mercer County Library System in 1987, becoming head children’s librarian at the West Windsor branch before retiring in 2008. She spearheaded the library’s large ‘Rain Forest Mural’ by Ilya Spirin and was fond of creating programs that responded to the changing demographics of the region, including Chinese New Year and Diwali. Faith spoke with pride on seeing children from her reading and arts programs grow up; years later, they and their parents would see her around town and thank her.
Faith enjoyed traveling, including several trips to Japan, Korea, and Canada. She was a lifelong lover of animals, especially her many cats over the years. She enjoyed printmaking and photography and enthusiastically used FaceBook to connect with people from her past and present. Above all, Faith loved participating and sharing in the lives of her five grandchildren.
Faith is survived by her children and their spouses: Helene, Mark (Peter Hare), David (Linda Yim), and Leila (Richard Surratt); and her grandchildren: Leah, Michael, and Alex Surratt; Michael Yim; and Emi Hare-Yim. She is predeceased by her husband Michael, a research scientist at RCA’s David Sarnoff Research Center. She was a resident of Princeton for 60 years until her move to Atria Senior Living in Riverdale, NY, in March 2023.
A Celebration of Life is scheduled for 2pm on Saturday, September 16, at the Present Day Club, 73 Stockton St., Princeton. All who knew Faith and would like to gather to remember her are welcome. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Friends of the West Windsor Library are requested, at https://fowwl.org/.