Midori Koba (Poston 330-4-B) was born in Coronado, California to
Japanese immigrants parents, Masanori and Shizue (Tsuneyoshi) Koba. Her father was a
gardener and had immigrated in 1906 to the United States; her
mother immigrated in 1920.
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| Midori Koga |
When Midori was 8 year old, she returned from Japan with her mother and siblings, Haruki, Takeshi, Mary, and Mitsuko Ruth. Midori attended Coronado High School where she played
on the softball and volleyball teams. She was a member of the G.A.A. Club. Her 1940 junior year high school yearbook
called her a "flashy" basketball player.
Following the signing of Executive Order 9066, Midori and her sister Mitsuko, were evacuated with their
parents from Coronado to the Santa Anita (Racetrack) Assembly Center. They arrived at Poston, Arizona, concentration camp 3 on
August 27,1942. While at Poston, Midori
continued to actively participate in sports. She was picked for the 1944 Volleyball All-Star Team
as an alternate, and for the 1944 Senior Girls Basketball All-Star 1st team. She was a guard for the Phylesiun basketball
team, and played third base for the Camp IV softball team with a batting
average of .500 (32 times at bat.) Midori was picked as an
infielder for the 1944 Girls League softball All Stars team. She took a seasonal leave on September 4, 1944
and went outside of Poston to work in a cannery in Utah. She was picked as a
guard for the 1945 Girls Basketball All Star 1st team. Midori left Poston,
Arizona on May 1, 1945 and went to Detroit, Michigan. In September of 1945, her parents and sister
finally left Poston and returned to San Diego.
In December of 1947, her brother, Haruki and his
wife purchased a tofu shop from Yoshio Kawamoto. It was located at 418 Island Street (between
4th and 5th) in San Diego. MIdori worked at the tofu shop. In 1960, MIdori married Ben T. Koga (Poston
318-1-C) in San Diego.
Midori and Ben moved to Fresno County, and operated Ben's Cafe in Parlier, California. Midori was a waitress and raised two daughters. She was a member of the Parlier Buddhist Church and
attended the Poston 3 camp reunions.
Midori Koga died on April 27, 2013 at the Hinds
Hospice in Fresno, California. She was
preceeded in death by her parents, Masanori (1979) and Shizue Koba (1994);
brothers, Haruki Jack (1995), and Takeshi; and sisters, Mary, and Mitsuko.
She is survived by her husband, Ben; daughters Gay
(Brian) Kurahashi and Jan Koga; and grandchildren, Bailey and Conner Kurahashi.
