Carl Hideki Kikuchi

Carl Hideki Kikuchi was born on June 23rd, 1950 in East Lansing, Michigan. He was the second of three children to parents Grace and Chihiro. Carl grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where his father Chihiro worked as a professor at the University of Michigan. During his childhood, Carl and his siblings Naomi and Gary lived abroad in Taiwan, during their father’s sabbaticals.

Carl graduated from Ann Arbor High School in 1968, and enrolled at Harvard University. After his freshman year, he opted to ride his bicycle from Boston back to Ann Arbor, rather than travel by some other motorized means of transportation. He graduated from Harvard in 1973 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy. After his graduation, he traveled to Israel to visit a close friend from college who was staying there for the summer and then returned to the United States to begin graduate studies in the creative writing program at the University of Iowa, focusing on poetry. He continued to write and publish poems throughout his adult life.

After completing his Masters Degree, Carl moved to Minneapolis, where he ultimately met his lifelong partner Jan at an art museum. Carl moved to Northern Virginia where Carl was beginning a job working for a government contractor, and when Jan moved to Virginia they married in 1981. In 1983, they welcomed their son Colin, and moved to Falls Church City, where they would live for the next 35 years.

Carl spent most of his career working in litigation support for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. During his career, he was involved in a number of cases or issues to which the federal government was party, including lawsuit(s) against Big Tobacco, consideration of the Yucca Mountain nuclear repository, and damages to victims and families of the 9/11 attacks.

A number of activities and hobbies occupied Carl’s time outside of work - family life, running, gardening, and birding. As Chihiro and Grace were nearing retirement age, they had built a small cabin near Eagle Harbor on Michigan’s Keweenah Peninsula. During the summers, traveling “up north” during the summer to visit with his mother Grace became a family tradition, as did berry-picking and jam-making.

Retiring from the federal government provided the time to spend more time on these interests, and pick up a few new ones (mainly art/painting). During these “golden years” Carl and Jan spent time traveling to national parks - including some of the less-visited ones - along with spending more time with friends and volunteer groups at home. For Carl, this included continuing the Christmas bird count through the Audubon Society, and working on the Tripps Run restoration project in some nearby woods.

In 2018, Carl and Jan re-located from Falls Church to Tucson, Arizona, to be closer to son Colin and his family. “Grandpa Carl” was loved by his 3 grandsons Joel, Felix, and Cormac, and he introduced his grandsons to air-hockey and sushi making. Carl continued birding in Arizona - both with adult friends, and also sharing his love of birds while taking his grandsons on walks at the Sweetwater Wetlands. He also became active in the Tucson Pastel Society, and was honored to have some of his artwork displayed at the Amerind Museum and also local venues.

He had planned to teach a local class on pastel art during February, which he sadly had to cancel due to his worsening struggle with cancer.

Carl was a wonderful brother, son, husband, father, and grandfather, and will be sorely missed by his family and friends. He is survived by his wife Jan, brother Gary, sister Naomi, and son Colin.

Celebration of Life, 10:00 AM, Wednesday, April 1, 2026.