Danny Floyd Waters was born in a military hospital on November 16, 1952 in Fukuoka, Japan to Floyd Waters and Fusae Yoshimura. His father was serving in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War when he met his mother, Fusae, a native of Fukuoka. When Danny was about six months old the family moved to the U.S. and eventually settled in Eureka due to the favorable job prospects and economic conditions.

Danny grew up in Eureka and graduated from Eureka High School in 1970. He attended the College of the Redwoods but never earned a degree, and eventually began working for Louisiana-Pacific (LP). He worked for LP for over two decades before switching to construction jobs after LP ceased most of its Humboldt County operations. Despite never graduating from college, he had a strong intellectual curiosity and was an avid reader of history. This was reflected in his rather impressive knowledge of the history of the Roman Empire. Danny also enjoyed playing tennis in his younger years, was a lifelong Golden State Warriors fan, and a passionate deer hunter – despite the notable feat of never successfully shooting a single deer in more than a dozen consecutive years of hunting.

His Japanese genes should have inclined him to a life of admirable longevity; however, Danny was only 69 years old when he died in Eureka on April 28, 2022. It could be said that it was not the years that finally did him in, but rather the proverbial “mileage” on both his body and soul that brought him to his terminal breath.

Danny is preceded in death by his father Floyd and brother Eugene and survived by his mother Fusae, his lifelong friend since childhood John Salizzoni, and his son, U.S. diplomat Jiro R. Waters.

There will be no funeral nor memorial service, however for those of you who have fond memories of Danny please raise a glass of your favorite beverage and have a toast to him. Sic itur ad astra.

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