Kay Sugahara ’32

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Kay Sugahara epitomizes the nature of individual professional achievement. However, Sugahara is not only a highly successful self-made man; his story also is one of personal success and honor.

Sugahara is founder and chairman of Fairfield-Maxwell, Ltd., a private company that owns and operates 45 subsidiaries with interests in oil tankers, refrigerator ships, oil and gas exploration, marine services, geophysical surveys and seismic products.

Sugahara grew up an orphan in a Methodist mission. He graduated from UCLA in 1932 and met with great success in the trade industry before evacuation to internment camps and recruitment by the OSS during World War II. Starting over, Sugahara achieved phenomenal success in business and finance.

Sugahara’s sense of duty and service pervade his life’s actions and contribute mightily to his personal success. He is the director of 15 business organizations in the United States and abroad. He chairs the U.S. Asia Institute and is on the board of directors of the General William J. Donovan Memorial Foundation.