Seiichi Shimomura was born in Seattle, Washington, where his father was a practicing dentist. However, he was raised in Japan and attended medical school there, later serving in the Japanese Navy medical corps during World War II. After the war, he trained in New York and was a cardiologist at St. Luke’s Hospital until his retirement in 1992. Seiichi and his wife, Alice, were active volunteers with various organizations including The Japanese American Association of New York, Inc. (JAANY), and he was a past President of the Japanese Medical Society of America (JMSA). In 1993, Seiichi was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class by the Emperor of Japan.