YAMAUCHI, WAKAKO (NAKAMURA)

Wakako Yamauchi

   Wakako Nakamura was born in October 25, 1924 to Yosaku and Hamako Nakamura in Westmorland, California.  Her parents were Japanese immigrants from Shizuoka-Ken, Japan. Her father's lettuce crop failed after the 1940 earthquake and the family moved to Oceanside, where they borrowed money to start a boarding house.     

     On May 15, 1942, when Wakako was 17 years old, she was evacuated with her parents and older siblings, Yukiko and Isamu, from Oceanside, California to the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 12-1-A. While detained at Poston, Wakako was employed as an artist for the Press Bulletin, the camp newspaper.  She also was employed as a cartoonist for the Poston Chronicles, where she started  her lifelong friendship with the writer, Hisaye Yamamoto, one of the first Nisei writers to earn literary distinction after World War II with highly polished short stories.  Wakako's  brother, Isamu Sam Nakamura, departed from Poston on October 7, 1943 and  transferred to the Tule Lake Segregation Center in California.

     On April 11, 1944, Wakako found employment in Chicago, and left Poston.  She worked in a candy factory and attended many play performances while in Chicago. Her parents were still at Poston, and her 59 year old father, Yosaku Nakamura, was hospitalized at the Poston General Hospital for 14 days before he died on October 29, 1945. Her mother departed to  San Diego on November 12, 1945 and was among the very last internees to leave the closing camp.   

     Wakako took night school painting classes at the Otis Art Center in Los Angeles and learned to love painting.  Wakako married Chester Yamauchi in 1948 and began a family and raised her only child, Joy. 

     Wakako began writing fiction after raising her daughter, when she was in her thirties.  She was given a great opportunity to publish her writing when the Rafu Shimpo asked her to contribute to its annual holiday newspaper issue. Wakako's  first play, And the Soul Shall Dance, was adapted from her short story of the same title. The  East West Players’ artistic director, Japanese actor, Mako had read her story and encouraged Wakako to adapt it into a play. The play was first performed at the East West Players  of Los Angeles and won the Los Angeles Drama Critics' Circle Award for best new play of 1977. It was produced as a television drama for the PBS station KCET in Los Angeles.

     Wakako's short story “And the Soul Shall Dance” was published in the groundbreaking Asian American anthology Aiiieeeee! (1974) and later adapted into an award-winning play, which launched her long career as an acclaimed playwright. Wakako wrote And the Soul Shall Dance, which has been republished numerous times since it first appeared in 1966, and was made into a play in the mid-1970s. Wakako  was a winner in the 1975 Amerasia Journal Short Story Contest, and awarded the 1976 Rockefeller Playwright in Residence Grant. She also won the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for best new play of 1977.

     Wakako's first collection, Songs My Mother Taught Me: Stories, Plays, and Memoir, was published in 1994. She wrote the stories collected in Rosebud in later years, focusing on the clarity of her language and “telling the story, getting as close to the truth as I can.” In 1994, Wakako Yamauchi received the Lila Wallace-Readers' Digest Writers Award,
     In 12-1-A, Wakako transfers the World War II Japanese internment camp experience to the stage.  The title is a reference to her family's address at the Poston, Arizona internment camp.

"And the Soul Shall Dance" (1974, story; 1976, play)
"Boatmen on Toneh River" (1983, story)
"Surviving the Wasteland Years" (1988, story)
"Makapoo Bay" (1985, story)
"Maybe" (1990, story)
Songs My Mother Taught Me: Stories, Plays, and Memoir (1994)

Sources:

http://voices.cla.umn.edu/artistpages/yamauchi_wakako.php

http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0767422783/student_view0/wakako_yamauchi-999/about_the_author.html

aascpress.metapress.com/index/b38442n132717x62.pdf

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Wakako-Yamauchi/108005732561818

http://rafu.com/news/2011/04/author-wakako-yamauchi-to-discuss-new-works-at-janm/

NAGAMATSU, YOSHIKO "YO" (1920-2011)

Yoshiko Nagamatsu

     Yoshiko "Yo" Nagamatsu was born in Japan on August 25, 1920, and was adopted when she was 4 years old by Ikugoro and Shimayo Nagamatsu. She attended Paradise School, an integrated elementary school in Las Vegas, Nevada, and frequently played with her Tomiyasu cousins, Maymi,  Uwami, Kiyo, and Nanyu at her Uncle Yonema "Bill" and  Aunt Toyono Tomiyasu's  family farm in Las Vegas, which was  located at  Paradise and Warm Springs Road. Her Aunt Toyono was her adopted mother's sister.

     Yoshiko graduated from the Las Vegas High School in 1936, and the attended the University of Redlands in Southern California.

     After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Yoshiko was a student living in Redlands.  She  was directly evacuated to the Poston, Arizona internment camp I in  the spring of 1942, where she worked as a nurse, according to the internment camp newspaper,  or nurse's aide for the Poston camp hospital located at camp I.  Since Yoshiko was separated from her family at the time of the evacuation, she left Poston on September 14, 1942  and joined her mother living in Nevada.

     Yoshiko graduated from the University of Redlands, and at the age of 30, she  traveled and toured the country of France. After the trip, she returned to Redlands, going through the port in Vermont from the T.S.S. Canberra.

     In 1951, Yoshiko moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan and worked for the University of Michigan. She was a patron of the University Musical Society University of Michigan. In 1987, she retired as the Deputy Assistant to the Dean of The University Library. She lived at the Glacier Hills Retirement Community in Ann Arbor and died on September 11, 2011.

Sources:

http://obits.mlive.com/obituaries/annarbor/obituary.aspx?n=yoshiko-nagamatsu-yo&pid=153720490

http://www.library.unlv.edu/speccol/databases/index.php?coll=photocoll&recid=305

http://www.library.unlv.edu/speccol/photographs/0294_Tomiyasu.html

The Press Bulletin, published at Poston, Ariz. September 16, 1942.

SOGIOKA, GENE ISAO (1914-1988)

Gene I. Sogioka, 73; Painted Camp Scenes

Published: March 01, 1988

     Gene Isao Sogioka, a watercolorist who painted scenes of daily life in an Arizona internment camp (Poston camp 2)  where he and other Americans of Japanese descent were held during World War II, died of cancer of the larynx on Febuary 21, 1988  at his home in Larchmont, N.Y. He was 73 years old.
     Mr. Sogioka, who was born in Irvindale, California, was a graduate of the Chiounard Art Institute, now the California Institute of Fine Arts. Before the war, he was an animator for the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California.
     In 1942, Mr. Sogioka and his family were sent to a camp near Parker, Arizona, one of several places where 120,000 Japanese-Americans, most of them from the West Coast, were interned. During the two years he spent in detention, he produced more than 150 watercolors depicting life in the camps.
     The paintings are now part of the archives at the Olin Library at Cornell University. Some of those paintings are currently at the Smithsonian Institution as part of its exhibition, ''A More Perfect Union: Japanese-Americans and the U.S. Constitution.''
     Mr. Sogioka is survived by his wife, the former Mine Mayebo; his brother, Mutushi, of Los Angeles; three daughters, Cecile Ralph of Gardiner, N.Y., Jean Sammarco of Townsville, Australia, and Alyce Conklin of New Paltz, N.Y., and three grandchildren.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/1988/03/01/obituaries/gene-i-sogioka-73-painted-camp-scenes.html

RALPH, CECILE AKEMI (SOGIOKA) 1942-2005

     Cecile Akemi Sogioka was born January 5, 1942 in Covina, California to Gene Isao and Minnie (Mayebo) Sogioka. She moved with her parents from Baldwin Park to Sanger, and evacuated with her grandparent and their families to war time living quarters in the desert at the Poston, Arizona internment camp 2 on July 14, 1942.  Her family finally left the internment camp at Poston, Arizona on January 4, 1944, and resettled in  New York.
      Cecile received a B. A. degree in English from Syracuse University in 1964 and a Master's degree in Educational Administration from the State University of New York at New Paltz in 1987. Cecile was employed at Orange County Community College from 1977-1998. She began as Assistant to the Academic Dean and retired as Associate Dean of Academic Services.

  Cecile Akemi Sogioka Ralph, age 63, died on September 3, 2005 in Stuart, Florida and was a resident of Gardiner, NY.

     She is survived by her husband of 39 years, David Ralph; and sisters Jean LaSpina of Tequesta, Florida., and Alyce Conklin of New Paltz, N.Y.

Source:  Times Herald-Record on 9/9/2005.

SOGIOKA, MINNIE (MAYEBO) (1919-2005)

     Minnie Mayebo was born in Selma, California on January 21, 1919 to Japanese immigrants, Masato and Ayako (Matsuda) Mayebo.  Minnie Mayebo married Gene Isao Sogioka, who was born on December 21, 1914 in Azuza, California to Japanese immigrants, Sadakichi and Setsu Sogioka.

     Baby  Akemi Cecile, was born a month following the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  Minnie, Gene and their new baby moved from their home in Baldwin Park to Sanger, and evacuated with their families to war time living quarters in the desert at the Poston, Arizona internment camp 2 on July 14, 1942.  Her parents, Masato and Ayako and her brother, Raymond Gene Mayebo were assigned to Poston block 222-2-A.  They left for Colorado and resettled in New York.  Gene's parents, Sadakichi and Setsu and his brother, Mutsushi Sogioka were evacuated from Sanger, and assigned to Poston block 221-10-D.

     Gene Isao Sogioka was a watercolor artist who painted scenes of daily life in Poston. On January 4, 1944, Minnie, Gene and their daughter, left Poston, Arizona and departed on a train at Parker, Arizona bound for New York. Minnie's brother, Gene Mayebo, found outside employment in Keenesburg, Colorado and departed from Poston on June 4, 1944. Gene's brother, Mutsushi Sogioka found employment in Bridgeton, New Jersey, and left Poston on August 8, 1944. Minnie's parents, Masato and Ayako Mayebo, departed from Poston on August 15, 1945 and resettled in Selma, California. Gene's parents, Sadakichi and Setsu Sogioka, finally departed from Poston on September 19, 1945 and returned to Baldwin Park, California.

      Minnie worked for many years as a cost estimator for Sealectro Corporation, of Mamaroneck, New York.  During her retirement, Minnie donated her time as a Hospice volunteer.

      Minnie Sogioka, a resident of Larchmont, New York, died on March 27, 2005 in Stuart, Florida. She was preceded in death by her husband, Gene Isao Sogioka (Feb. 21, 1914 - Dec. 21, 1988); and brother, Hiroshi "Tom" Mayebo (Aug. 31, 1915-July 16, 1967 in Fresno County, California).
     She is survived by her daughter, Cecile (David) Ralph of Gardiner, NY, and Stuart, FL; Jean (James LaSpina) of Tequesta, FL; Alyce (Bruce) Conklin of New Paltz, NY; and  brother, Gene Mayebo.

Primary source: http://larchmontgazette.com/obituaries/20050401sogioka.html

KURIHARA, GRACE TOMIKO (TANBARA) 1908-1992

     Grace Tomiko Tanbara (Poston 308-14-D) was born on February 25, 1908 to Miyota and Takeno Tanbara, immigrants from Okayama Ken, Japan.  Miyota immigrated to the U.S. in 1898 via Portland, Oregon on the SS Monmouthshire, and his wife, Takeno immigrated in 1905 to the U.S. on the S.S. Iyo Maru via Seattle to join him in living in Pleasanton, California. 

     At the age of 19 years, Grace Tanbara married Japanese immigrant, Masao Kurihara, who born to Kiyosuke and Iku Kurihara in 1901.  Both of his parents had  immigrated to the U.S.  Kiyosuke immigrated in 1899 and Masao arrived in 1914 as a passenger agent for the railroad. Grace gave birth to a son, Tommy, during the mid 1930s in San Francisco, California.

     Grace's older brother, Earl Kazumi Tanbara, graduated in 1923  from Los Gatos High School, and in 1927,  received a B.A. degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He was employed for the Dollar Steamship Company from 1928-1939. At its height in the 1920s, the Dollar Steamship Company was the largest and most successful United States shipping firm, and its signature white dollar sign mounted on red-banded stacks was known around the world. Earl became the Director of Marketing for Dollar Steamship Company and with his wife, Ruth, they traveled extensively around the world for Dollar Steamship Company.

     In 1942, following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and with the threat of evacuation, Grace's brother Earl Kazumi Tanbara and his wife Ruth, moved from Berkeley, California to a farm in Reedley, California, with his parents, Miyoto and Takeno Tanbara in an attempt to avoid wartime internment.  Unfortunately, the boundaries for relocating people of Japanese ancestry were moved further inland. Grace's parents, Miyoto and Takeno Tanbara decided to not relocate and were evacuated to Poston, Arizona internment camp block 308-14-D.  Meantime, Grace and her son Thomas M. Kurihara were evacuated from Berkeley to the Pomona Assembly Center.  They were later transported to more permanent living quarters at Heart Mountain internment camp in Wyoming. On December 1, 1942, Grace and Tommy were reunited with her parents when they were finally granted a transfer to the Poston Arizona internment camp block 308-14-A. Tommy attended elementary school at Poston camp 3 and explored the Colorado River. Grace, Tommy, and his grandparents, departed from Poston on August 28, 1945 and took a on a train bound to Chicago, Illinois. Thomas was raised and attended schools in the Twin cities in Minnesota.

     Grace Kurihara died on August 5, 1992 in San Francisco. She is survived by her son, Thomas M. Kurihara, of Arlington, Virginia. 

Primary source: http://www.twincitiesjacl.org/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC={99BBC5F5-AA67-4BED-B535-C800CC824AE6}

SUKEKANE, CHIYEKO "MARY" (HAMADA) 1917-2002

     Chiyeko "Mary" Hamada (Poston 216-10-B ) was born in Penryn, California on August 20, 1917 to Choichi and Takino Hamada, Japanese immigrants, who arrived in the U.S. in 1910. The Hamada family moved to Watsonville when Mary was a teen-ager. In 1940, Mary married Masao Sukekane who was born in November 1, 1909 in Santa Cruz County, California.

     After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Mary and Masao Sukekane were evacuated to the Salinas Assembly Center from their home in Watsonville, and later transported to more permanent living quarters in the desert at the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 216-10-B on July 3, 1942.  Takeshi Sukekane was born the following year at the Poston General Hospital. On December 4, 1944, Masao obtained employment and took his family out of Poston to resettle in Twin Falls, Idaho. 

    The Sukekane family returned to Watsonville after the end of WW II. Mary was a bookkeeper for the family's strawberry and vegetable farm.  She gave birth to baby John Masaru on December 16, 1955 and he died on April 11, 1956.

     Mary Sukekane was a member of the Watsonville Buddhist Temple and the Fujinkai, the Watsonville Buddhist Women's Association. Her husband, Masao Sukekane died on January 6, 1985 in Watsonville.  Mary Sukekane, resident of Watsonville, died on June 15, 2002 at the age of 84 years.  Mary was preceded in death by her husband of 45 years, Masao Sukekane (1985); son John Sukekane (1956); and brothers, Minoru M. (1977)  and Kiyoto "George" Hamada (1983). 

     She is survived by a son, Takeshi "Tak" Sukekane of Watsonville; brothers, Richard Hamada of Loomis and Teruo Hamada of Watsonville; and sister, Satoyo Makishima of Seattle.

Primary source: http://www.genealogybuff.com/ca/santacruz/webbbs_config.pl/read/54

SAKAUYE, MARIE TOYO (UMEDA KAWASAKI) 1917-2010

    Marie Toyo Umeda ( Poston 19-14-A) was born 7/20/1917 in San Francisco, California and lost her father when she was a young child.  She was raised in the Salinas Valley by her stepfather, Manjiro Kondo and her mother, Misao, with her younger brother, Mitsuo Umeda.  Marie lived with her step-brothers, Masuo and Shikatsu Kondo, and step-sisters, Mariko and Makiko Kondo.   

    Marie Umeda married a Hawaiian, Noboru Kawasaki, and after the bombing of Pearl Harbor,  they were evacuated from their home in Salinas with their young children, James Takemitsu, and Dennis to the Salinas Assembly Center.  They were later transported to more permanent living quarters in the desert at the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 19-14-A on July 2, 1942. Ronald Katsuyoshi Kawasaki was born in 1943 at Poston.  The Kawasaki family departed from Poston on October 18, 1945 and went to Morgan Hill, California. 

   Her husband, Noboru Kawasaki died on October 31, 1967.  Marie (Umeda) Kawasaki remarried in 1975, to Eiichi E. Sakauye,  until his death in Stanford on November 30, 2005 at the age of 93 years.  Marie was a resident of San Jose, and died on December 23, 2010.  She is preceded in death by her husbands, Noboru Kawasaki (1967) and Eiichi E. Sakauye (2005);  and 5 siblings.

      She is survived by sons, James (Jan), Dennis (Cindy), Ronald (Jennifer) and Wayne (Linda) Kawasaki; step-daughters, Carolyn (Ernest Kazato) Sakauye and Jane (Donald) May; Mitsuo Kondo, Makiko "Mike" Ikemura and Sally Okano.

Source: Published in San Jose Mercury News/San Mateo County Times on December 29, 2010

KUBOTA, SHIRO (1931-2011)

Shiro Kubota

     Shiro Kubota (Poston 209-9-B) was born March 8, 1931 in Salinas, California and the youngest of six siblings born to Enosuke and Shiyekesa Sue Kubota. 
     After the signing of Executive Order 9066 in 1942, the Kubota family was evacuated from their home in Salinas to the Salinas Assembly Center.  After a few months, they were transported to more permanent living quarters in the Arizona desert at the Poston, Arizona internment camp, block 209-9-B on July 4, 1942.  While in camp, Shiro earned the title of fastest swimmer. In January of 1943, his sister, Hede Sue Kubota, married Hideo Bob Takiguchi.  In May of that year, another sister, Aiko Alice Kubota found employment in Detroit, Michigan and left Poston.  Several months later, his other sister, Riwa Eva Kubota located employment in Detroit, and left Poston.  In August 1944, his brother, Jerry Jiro Kubota left Poston to report to Fort Douglas, Utah for the U.S. Army. Shiro and his mother left Poston on October 31, 1944, and went to Bridgeton, New Jersey.

     Later, Shiro returned to Salinas and played football for the Salinas High School.

Shiro served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War Conflict. 

     As a businessman, Shiro operated the Kubota Farms, Inc. for over 30 years. He assisted exchange students as well as his employees, and was the first to use rubber bands on celery for packing. 

     Shiro Kubota was an adventurer, and lived in the desert from his van for over a year while attempting to mine for gold. While he was living in San Francisco, he invented a golf club with name inscribed via casting after reading a book on investment casting. Shiro invented a safe cover for wheelchairs, to help a friend who was exposed to inclimate weather.

     Shiro Kubota, a resident of El Sobrante, California, died on May 31, 2011. He is preceded in death by his father; mother, Shiyekesa Sue Kubota (1980), and five siblings.  

     He is survived by wife of 27 years, Ria Tanz Kubota; daughters, Sharon Kubota of Southern California and Kym Cashen of Long Beach; and son, Masaru Kubota of Carmel.  

Published in Contra Costa Times on June 4, 2011

KOIKE, TERRY TERUO (1922-2011)

Terry Koike

     Terry Teruo Koike (53-5-C) was born on September 12, 1922 in San Fernando, California to Shiyoshi and Teru Koike.  Terry attended schools in Los Angeles and Imperial Valley.  He graduated from El Centro High School and attended Imperial Valley Community College.

     Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, his father, Shiyoshi Koike was picked up by the FBI and detained. On May 19, 1942, Teru, Terry, and his brother, Roy Koike were evacuated from Holtville, California and moved to their wartime home at the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 53-5-C. On April 14, 1944, Terry with his brother and mother, voluntarily transferred from Poston, Arizona to the Department of Justice detention prison at Crystal City, Texas to  join Shiyoshi Koike, who was detained at that location.  While at Crystal City, Terry met his future wife, Hisa (Imamura).

     Terry traveled to Japan, and returned to Southern California. In 1951, Terry married Hisa and they settled in Spring Valley, California where he raised his family, orchids and ferns for over 30 years. In 1974, his cymbidium, General Sherman variety "Spring Valley" earned the title of #1 Orchid in the World.

     In June, 2010, Terry was awarded an honorary AA degree from Imperial Valley Community College. He died at the age of 88 years, on August 29, 2011 in La Mesa, California.

     He is survived by his wife Hisa; sons, Steven (Margaret) of Salinas, CA, Bruce (Mary) of Newport, OR;  and daughter, Laurie of Torrance, CA. 

Source: Published in San Diego Union-Tribune on September 4, 2011

SUEKAMA, RUTH EMIKO (NAKAI) 1919-2006

Ruth Suekama

     Ruth Emiko Nakai (Poston 213-7-BC) was born on December 4, 1919 in Monrovia, California to Itsugi R. and Fusao Nakai. 
     In the spring of 1942, her parents with their 6 children were evacuated from Gilroy, California to the Salinas Assembly Center, and on July 5, 1942, they were transported and arrived to their permanent living quarters at the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 213-7-BC. Her father had selected a Nebraska farmer, Sam Isamu Suekama to be her husband, and they were married at Poston on May 6, 1944, and immediately left for Colorado. Ruth and Sam raised four children in Denver.

     Ruth was a 45 year breast cancer survivor and modeled for Breast Cancer Day of Caring, organized the yearly Cherry Blossom Festivals, was active with the Denver Buddhist Temple, JACL, Takayama Sister Cities, and the Denver Mayor's Commission on Aging. Her husband, Sam Suekama was a carpenter and worked with home remodeling.

     Ruth Emiko Suekama, died on November 17, 2006 in Denver. She is preceded in death by brother, Shigeo Nakai (1964); sister, Sally Mikie Nakai (1989); and her parents,  Itsugi (1971) and Fusao Nakai (1980).

     She is survived by her husband, Sam Isamu; sons, James (Shoji) of San Francisco, Roger of Chicago, and Donald Suekama; daughter, Jane Kano;  brothers,  Albert Yoshi Nakai, Philip Itsuo Nakai, and Roy Takao Nakai of California; and sister, Barbara Kikue Matsuba.

Sources: Rocky Mountain News. November 22, 2006,  http://www.denverpost.com/golf/ci_4727049

SUGISHITA, ANNE (TABATA) 1923-2009

     Anne Tabata was born April 20, 1923, in San Jose, California, one of six children born to   Frank Goro and Mime (Yamauchi) Tabata.  Anne graduated from Hollister High School in 1941.
     Her mother was a widow traveling with 5 children when they were evacuated from Hollister to the Poston, Arizona internment camp I, on July 5, 1942. On May 18, 1943, the Tabata family transferred to the  Heart Mountain, Wyoming internment camp, where Anne married Thomas Shoji Sugishita and their first child was born.

Anne Sugishita

     After the war, Anne and Tom Sugishita returned to the family ranch in Coyote, California and raised three children. They raised award-winning fruits and vegetables for the Santa Clara County Fair and California State Fair. They sold their produce at their Garden Farm Fruit Stand until 1983, when they retired to Morgan Hill. Anne was married to Thomas Sugishita for 53 years until he died on April 1, 1996 in Morgan Hill.

     Anne was an accomplished artist in oil and watercolor paintings, and a member of Women In Touch, the Coyote Grange, and an Honorary Member of the Flower Lovers Club of Morgan Hill. Anne Sugishita died at the age of 86 years on May 18, 2009. She is preceded in death by husband Tom (1996); brothers Raymond and Flyer Kingo Tabata; and infant sister, Lucille Tabata.

     She is survived by her brother, James Tabata of Minneapolis, Minn; sister, Eva Tabata of Hollister, California; daughter, Barbara Sugishita Pazoki; and sons, Harold (Eileen) Tabata and Tim (Kathy) Tabata.

Source: http://southvalleyobits.com/classifieds/XcCPViewItem.asp?ID=290752

NAKANO, GEORGE SHIGEYUKI (1928-2010)

George S. Nakano

     George Shigeyuki Nakano (Poston 27-13-AB) was born December 21, 1928 in Venice, California to Minokichi and Kima (Hamada) Nakano.  He was raised in Oceanside, California.

     Following the attack at Pearl Harbor, his father, Minokichi Nakano was picked up by the FBI and detained in the Department of Justice detention prison in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  
     George, his mother and six siblings were evacuated to the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 27-13-AB on May 15, 1942 from Oceanside, California. His father was given parole and joined the family at Poston, Arizona  on June 2, 1942. His brother Ben Tsutomu Nakano found work near Alamosa, Colorado and left Poston on November 30, 1943.  George and the rest of the family returned to Oceanside on August 20, 1945, except his brother  Bob, who stayed at Poston until October 3, 1945 when he finally left and traveled to Detroit, Michigan.

   George graduated from Oceanside-Carlsbad Union High School in 1948. He served in the U.S. Army for two years, then attended Oceanside-Carlsbad College. In 1954, he moved to Caldwell, Idaho on a football scholarship and attended The College of Idaho, where he was also on the boxing team. He met Elaine Lutes, and they were married on August 29, 1959 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Caldwell, Idaho, and they raised four children.

     George was an instructor and sports coach at Middleton High School, and Caldwell Jr. High School.  At Caldwell High School, George coached football, wrestling, and track. He spent 19 years as an instructor and coach at Borah High School. George received the Charlie Alvaro Athletic Award, the A1 and A2 Track Coach of the Year, the Gary Comstock Memorial Award, the Idaho High School Activities Association Hall of Fame, and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame "Lifetime Achievement to Wrestling".  In 1982, George opened the Nakano Driving School and ran the business for 23 years, while teaching many to drive using his patented wheel.

     George Shigeyuki Nakano passed away July 18, 2010 at the age of 81. He was preceded in death by his parents, Minokichi (1952) and Kima Nakano (1975); brother, Henry Tadashi (1989); and sister, Marion Katsuko.

     George is survived by his wife of 50 years, Elaine; son, Tad (Juli) Nakano; daughters, Nikki Nakano, Karin (Jeff) Loffer, and Kristin (Charlie) Finley; brothers, Ben T. Nakano, and Bob (Sue) Nakano; and sisters, Frances Carvajal and Iris Imoto.

Published in Idaho Statesman on July 21, 2010

KITAGAWA, KIYOKO (UKEGAWA) 1924-2011

Kiyoko Kitagawa

     Kiyoko Ukegawa (Poston 22-8-AB) was born January 2, 1924 in Olive, California to Fukutaro and Tomoye Ukegawa. Her father nicknamed her "Lucky Baby" since 1924 was also a prosperous year for the small family farm and the Ukegawas were able to purchase their first car-- a Model T. Ford.  On October 5, 1931 when Kiyoko was 8 years old, she traveled with her two older siblings, Hiroshi and Mutsuko on the S.S. Asama Maru on a return trip from Wakayama, Japan to the United States. Kiyoko attended Tustin High School, where she was active in sports  such as softball, field hockey, and tennis.

     On May 15, 1942, the Ukegawa family was evacuated from Thermal, California and arrived to their wartime home at Poston, Arizona (block 22-8-AB). In camp, Kiyoko became an accomplished seamstress, talented artist, and graduated from high school. She met her future husband, Yeji Kitagawa, who was evacuated with his family from Santa Ana, California. On August 24, 1943, Yeiji left the Poston camp and worked in Layton, Utah. Yeji and Kiyoko were married on December 16, 1944.

     On May 20, 1945, Kiyoko left Poston and resettled to Thermal in the Coachella Valley, where the Kitagawa family had been farming since 1912. Kiyoko was integral to the success of the family farming business and saw the farm grow from 80 acres to over 1000 acres and eventually included Kitagawa and Sons, Golden Acre Farms, and YK Packing Company.
     Yeji and Kiyoko had eight children. After the death of her husband Yeiji in 1978, she continued farming with her children. In 1992, Coachella Valley California Women for Agriculture named her "Farmer of the Year". Kiyoko Kitagawa, a long-time resident of Oasis, California, died on August 24, 2011.  She was preceded in death by her husband, Yeji (1978); son, Eugene Kitagawa (1975); and brothers, Hiroshi (2009) and Joe (2003) Ukegawa.

     Kiyoko is survived by her sisters, Mutsuko Iwatate and Yoshi Kato; sons,  Joe, Paul, and Richard Kitagawa; and daughters, Patricia Enochs, Mary Ann Voorhees, Janice Schmid, and Susan Kitagawa.

Sources: http://rafu.com/news/kiyoko-kitagawa/

NOMURA, LELAND KATSUICHI (1938-2010)

Leland Nomura

     Leland Katsuichi Nomura (Poston45-8-B)  was born August 7, 1938 in Los Angeles, California to Seiichi and Mitsuko Nomura.   
     On May 29, 1942, at the age of 3 years, Leland, his younger brother Gerald Nomura, and their parents were evacuated to the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 45-8-B.  While inprisoned at Poston, his mother gave birth to a son, Dale in 1943. The Nomura family left Poston on August 8, 1944 and resettled in Chicago, Ilinois. 

     In 1985, Leland started a business in the Quad Cities. Nomura Enterprises, Inc. (NEI) was founded and remained in the Quad Cities the next 20 years, growing from 10 to 250 employees in five states.  Leland was named "Illinois Minority Small Business Person of the Year in 1993" and credited his staff for the honor. He was a community leader and a proud Rock Island citizen, participated in community efforts including Project Now, and NEI partnered with Grant Wood Elementary in Rock Island to mentor the children. 

     Leland K. Nomura, died at the age of 72 years on November 14, 2010 at Trinity Rock Island, Illinois. He was preceded in death by his parents, Seiichi (1980) and Mitsuko Nomura. 

     He is survived by his wife of 36 years LoRee Nomura of Pine Grove, California;  son,  Vincent (Holly) Nomura of Bettendof, Iowa; brothers, Gerald (Henrietta) Nomura of Thousand Oaks, and Dale Nomura of Montebello; and sister, Christine (Jim) D’Ottavio of Sebastopol, California. 

Source:http://qctimes.com/app/obits/?section=profile&id=156641

ICHIKAWA, TAKEO "TAK"

 3 videos of Tak Ishikawa's oral interviews

http://eternalflames.ucsc.edu/exhibits/show/the-loyalty-questionaire/interview

 

Tak Ichikawa

      Takeo "Tak" Ichikawa (Poston 214-5-D)  was born on August 17, 1928 and raised in Salinas, California by his Japanese immigrant parents, Torakichi and Haruko Ichikawa. His father entered the United States through the port of San Francisco in 1912 and his mother followed in 1924. Tak had two sisters (Sakaye and Hisaye) and brothers (Sadao and Shigeo James).  The Ichikawa family farmed and shipped produce. 
     When Tak was 13 years old, his father was arrested by the local police, and was found to be a "subversive" and a “potentially dangerous enemy alien” due to his affiliations with Heimusha Kai, the Buddhist Church, and possessing a Japanese citizenship.

     Tak" has very vivid memories of the day his father was taken and the months and days leading up to it. As a family with immigrant parents and children of Japanese ancestry, the Ichikawa family, among many other Japanese and Japanese Americans, burned many valuable, cultural, and familial things that were Japanese. The burning of memorabilia was a mode to fit in and show loyalty to the United States. Many Japanese families threw out anything they thought might be considered "subversive".

     Tak, his mother and siblings were evacuated to the Salinas Assembly Center, and a few months later, moved to more permanent living quarters on July 4, 1942 at Poston, Arizona internment camp, block 214-5-D. Meanwhile, Tak's father was sent to several  detention prison camps, specifically for the alien Japanese which the police thought were a threat to the U.S. security. On June 18, 1943, Torakichi was paroled from the Department of Justice detention prison at Crystal City, Texas, and joined his family at the Poston, Arizona camp II.   On June 20, 1944, brother Sadao Ichikawa left Poston and resettled in Philadelphia.  On  October 28, 1944, Tak, his parents and the rest of the Ichikawa family left Poston and resettled in Preston, Idaho. 

     After camp, the Ichikawa family returned to Salinas, his father was torn apart and falsely accused and opened a store instead of putting his effort into restarting farming.  Tak attended Salinas Jr. College, and after college, he worked for the AAA Insurance Company.  Tak married Yoshiko and they have a family. His mother died at the age of 62 years in 1970, and Tak recalled his father as being a "broken man".

OSHITA, TAKUJI JACK (1921-2011)

     Takuji Jack Oshita (Poston 219-10-C) was born on March 27, 1921, in Castroville to Takizo and Mesu Oshita, who were “truck" farmers. Jack was a graduate of Monterey High School. 
      In the early spring of 1942, the Oshita family was evacuated from Castroville to the Salinas Assembly Center following the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  On July 1, 1942, the family was relocated to more permanent living quarters at the relocation center in Poston, Arizona (block 219-10-C). Jack and his brother Frank, located outside work near Des Moines, Iowa, and left Poston, Arizona in September 1944. His parents and sister left Poston the following year and returned to Castroville.

Takuji Jack Oshita

     After the end of world War II, Jack returned to  Castroville.  Later, he moved to Sacramento to attend college and worked for the Franchise Tax Board as an accountant for five years.

     In the late 1950s, Jack returned to the Salinas area and along with his family (brother, Frank; brother-in-law, Don Mitani and cousin, George Yaguchi),  they reorganized the family business and established Oshita Inc. In 1956, Jack married Angela (Angie) Fernandez, and they had two children. 
     For more than three decades the business flourished with vegetables grown, harvested, sold and shipped by Oshita Inc. The farming area expanded from the Salinas Valley to Oxnard and the Imperial Valley.  The variety of products increased from green onions to a medley of leaf vegetables (from parsley to nappa). The brand names of OMO, MOR GREEN, and Big MO were recognized all over North America. Jack was in charge of sales until the company was sold in August of 1987. 
     Jack Oshita died at the age of 90 years on July 30, 2011.  He is preceded in death by his parents, Takizo (1955) and Mesu Oshita.

     He is survived by his wife, Angie; son, Steven of Palm Springs; daughter, Linda Silvestre of Salinas; brother, Frank K; and sister, Sally S. Mitani.

Sources: http://nikkeiwest.com/index.php/obituary-notice/192-obituaries-aug-10

http://obit.struveandlaporte.com/obitdisplay.html?task=Print&id=958070

SHIBATA, HARRY HIROYUKI (1926-2010)

     Harry Hiroyuki Shibata (Poston 30-9-B) was born on May 22, 1926 in Los Angeles to Tanio and Shizuyo Shibata. Harry grew up in the Boyle Heights section of Los Angeles. 
     On May 27, 1942, the Shibata family were evacuated to the relocation camp at Poston, Arizona (block 30-9-B). Harry left Poston in January 1944 to attend college near Rolla, Missouri.  After the war, he earned a B.S. degree in Engineering from the University of Minnesota and an M.S. degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Cal Tech.

     In 1963, Harry married Masako Takano.  Harry was an engineer at Lockheed Aerospace for over twenty five years. Upon retirement, he returned to school and earned an airplane mechanics certificate and worked for United Airlines Harry and Masaki lived in Southern California and in the Bay Area until her death in 1993.

     In 1995, Harry married Yuriko Sakurai Moriwaki, and they traveled around the world, attending Elder Hostel programs. Harry died on November 4, 2010 in San Francisco.

He is preceded in death by his parents Tanio Harry (1971) and Shizuyo (1978) Shibata, and brother, Alvin K Shibata (1998).

     Harry is survived by his wife, Yuri of San Francisco, his sister, Midori of Redwood City.

Primary source: http://www.nichibei.org/2010/12/obituary-shibata-harry-hiroyuki/