Stanley Hiroaki “Stan” Osaka

Biography

Stan was born on July 23, 1931 in Richmond, British Coumbia, to Otokichi and Midori Osaka. During the Second World War, he and his parents and sister, Kimiko, were interned at Tashme Internment Camp, British Columbia, by order of the Canadian Government. After the war, he relocated to Montreal to attend McGill University, but later transferred to the University of Manitoba, in Winnipeg, where he received his Bachelor of Architecture in 1957 and his Master of Architecture in 1958. He was active in his fraternity, the Pi Epsilon Chapter of the Zeta Psi Fraternity. Stan also attended the University of Tokyo from 1959 to 1961 on a Japanese Ministry of Education Fellowship to complete two years of his doctorate studies in Civic Design with Professors Kenzo Tange and Eika Takayama. While in Japan, he also had the opportunity to study for and receive a teaching certificate from the Misho-Ryu School of Floral Arrangement.

In 1962, Stan met his wife, Georgia Morishita, and they were married for 28 years. Stan and Georgia had one son, Robert. They spent many happy years, traveling all over the world until Georgia's passing in 1993. Stan was a founding partner and architect of the architectural and interior design firm, The IKOY Partnership, where he worked from 1968 to 1978. IKOY became a successful firm that gained national attention. Major projects during this time included apartment and townhouse projects in Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon and Calgary, as well as many commercial facilities, schools, colleges and institutional buildings.

In 1978, Stan established Stan H. Osaka Architect, where he was the sole principal architect working on many university and residential projects. From 1988 to 1997, Stan became the University Architect and Campus Planner for the President's Office of the University of Manitoba. Though he was dedicated to architecture, Stan was equally passionate about serving on the boards of many community organizations, such as the St. Boniface St. Vital Rotary Club, where he was a Director and President, and the Buddhist Churches of Canada, where he served as Director and Treasurer for many years. He was also a Director and President of the St. Vital Curling Club.