Kristin Murata
June 18, 1962 — March 28, 2012
A memorial will be Saturday, April 21, for Kristin Murata, who died at home in Boulder Creek surrounded by friends and family. She had battled melanoma and was 49 when she died.
Born Kristin Tracy Fladager, Mrs. Murata moved to Saratoga at age 11 and spent many years in Ridgefield, Conn.
She married John Murata in 1999 in Los Gatos and moved to Boulder Creek with her husband and 1-year-old child in 2002.
As a young mother, Mrs. Murata founded a Yahoo group called The Boulder Creek Walking Moms to help mothers and families support each other. The group grew to become The Boulder Creek Family Network, which boasts more than 300 members and their families and participates in community events.
Relatives said Mrs. Murata was a loving and dedicated mother. Her interests included crochet, gardening, cooking, baking, poetry, music, hiking, bicycle riding, horseback riding, traveling, piano, jokes and humor.
Mrs. Murata worked as a project manager for companies including Apple, Seagate, Addison Wesley and Franklin Templeton before becoming a full-time mother.
She crocheted scarves for Special Olympians, participated in the Valley Churches United Missions Christmas Project and served breakfast and volunteered at Boulder Creek Elementary School.
Mrs. Murata is survived by husband John Murata, son Kai Murata and daughter Colleen Murata, all of Boulder Creek; parents, Per-Arne and Josephine Fladager of Saratoga; and siblings, Karol Gardner of Lake Oswego, Ore., Kaaren Fladager of Oakland and Kyle Fladager of San Jose.
Saturday’s memorial service will begin at 1:30 p.m. at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 12770 Saratoga Ave., in Saratoga.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in Mrs. Murata’s name may be sent to Valley Churches United Missions, P.O. Box 367, Ben Lomond, CA 95005.
