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MT: Then when we came back to California, we had a, we were greeted... well, actually, my birth parents came back in June of (1945), back to Palo Alto. And they're, they came back because they had a place to go. This was a Quaker family that took 'em in. Somebody that was almost unbelievable, sort of like you. Every time the train came into Palo Alto to let the Japanese out of camp, she went and picked them up and gave them a job, so they had a place to stay.

JT: Do you remember her name?

MT: Yes, Mrs. Isenberg.

JT: Oh my goodness. She did this for many families?

MT: Oh yeah, lots of families. She (and) this other lady, Mrs. Duveneck, from Los Altos, were very instrumental in helping the Japanese come out of camp.

JT: Resettle.

MT: Yeah, resettle, right.

JT: Do you know if they were ever recognized for the work that they did?

MT: I'm sure they were.

JT: Oh, I hope so, because I'd never heard a story like that before.

MT: Oh, okay.

JT: And so when you got there, where did you live?

MT: We got off the train and actually, I left before my parents. I came back to Palo Alto with the Nakamura family. And then I was met by this Mrs. Isenberg, and then that was (...) in August.

JT: Of '45?

MT: '45. And lived with them, with the family.

JT: You were just a teenager?

MT: Yeah. I was going to, I started junior high school there. Anyway...

JT: Had you stayed in touch with them after a while?

MT: Yes, we still do.

JT: Oh, are they still...

MT: Not the parents, but the daughter.

JT: Oh my gosh. How wonderful, what a wonderful connection that you had.

<End Segment 4> - Copyright © 2021 Densho. All Rights Reserved.