Sherlock Shinbo, Longtime Florist In Greenwood, Wwii Internee

Sherlock Shinbo, 73, a quiet man whose flower shop was a mainstay for many years in the Greenwood neighborhood of North Seattle, died Friday, a few days after he received a letter of apology and a $20,000 check from the U.S. government as redress for his internment during World War II.

``He saw the letter and the check, and he didn't say anything. He just looked at it for a long, long time,'' said his son, Bill Shinbo. ``It's one of those nisei characteristics, a Japanese characteristic really, to not complain, not to be outward with your feelings.''

A service is scheduled for 7:30 tonight at the Seattle Buddhist Church, 1427 S. Main St.

Mr. Shinbo was born Jan. 12, 1917, in Stockton, Calif. His family moved to Seattle the following year, and his parents operated a grocery.

Mr. Shinbo attended Pacific Elementary School and the old Broadway High School on Capitol Hill. He studied pharmacy for one year at the University of Washington but could not afford to continue his university studies.

Like thousands of other Japanese Americans, Mr. Shinbo was interned during much of World War II. He was placed in camps in Puyallup, Idaho and California. He was released in 1944 and allowed only to travel east. He ended up in Cleveland and worked at a U.S. Steel plant.

Mr. Shinbo later returned to Seattle and worked at his brother Ralph's flower shop at 10th Avenue and Jackson Street. He married Mary Habu on Aug. 12, 1946. He and his brother married two sisters, and all four worked at the shop.

His bride's mother had owned Cherryland, a florist shop that her family lost when they were interned. Their building, in the International District, was converted into a machine shop that produced war materials, said Bill Shinbo.

In 1951, Mr. Shinbo opened his own shop, the Flower Nook, at Fourth Avenue and Pine Street.

Two years later, he opened North End Florist on Greenwood Avenue North, just north of North 85th Street. He ran the shop for 24 years.

Among his customers was Al Puetz, who owns the Puetz Golf Center, a driving range and store on Aurora Avenue North.

When a fast-food chain bought out the landlord of several storefront businesses, including Mr. Shinbo's flower shop, Puetz offered his florist a job.

Mr. Shinbo and his wife worked at the Puetz Golf Center for 11 years, and Puetz said they proved good salespeople, especially valuable in handling customers who spoke only Japanese.

``He was a real gentleman,'' Puetz said. ``He was the sort of person who, if you went out, he always wanted to pick up the check.''

An avid golfer, Mr. Shinbo was a member of the Puget Sound and Nisei golf clubs. He also was a member of the Allied Florist Association, Japanese American Citizens League, Greenwood Kiwanis and Greenwood Commercial Club.

Besides his son, of Mercer Island, Mr. Shinbo is survived by his wife, a daughter, Cathy O'Rear, Bellevue; a brother, Hachiro ``Hack'' Shinbo, Seattle; and two sisters, Barbara Wakazuru, Seattle, and Lois Hirano, Bellevue.