<Begin Segment 9>

JT: Okay, so then you came, and living here, and then you had Paul and Donna, and then what did you do after you retired?

MT: Not much. [Laughs]

JT: Did you have any interests besides taking care of Kenji?

MT: Played some tennis, played some golf.

JT: Did Kenji play golf and tennis, and/or tennis?

MT: He didn't play much tennis, but he golfed all the time.

JT: That's good. I'm glad that you kids were able to enjoy those kind of things that your parents never got to do.

[Interruption]

MT: Actually, I always called my adopted father, Father. And my other father had a name, I always called Grace Mama and Grace Papa.

JT: Oh, because your sister's name is...

MT: Name is Grace.

BS: So you were actually calling your birth mother Grace Mama.

MT: Right. Actually, I should have said that at the very beginning, otherwise it's very confusing, you don't know what father I'm talking about.

[Interruption]

JT: I was asking about your father whom I remember very well. His name was Hisao.

MT: That's correct.

JT: Okay, and he, that's where you lived on Pacific Avenue where they had the Nakata Garage. And you said a little earlier that he did gardening after resettling in Alameda. And I'm trying to remember how he passed away.

MT: He had a stroke.

JT: And was, did he live for a long time after the stroke?

MT: No. He had to go into a nursing home because it was very difficult to take care of somebody that's paralyzed.

JT: Right. Oh, he was paralyzed, okay.

MT: Yeah. So I think maybe half a year or less.

JT: I see, and then he passed away. And were you still living, you were not living at home anymore.

MT: Oh, no, I was already married and had Paul.

JT: And so Mrs. Nakata, your adopted mother, stayed in that house on Pacific?

MT: Right. Until she, I moved her to the J-Sei home on Channing.

JT: Right. Mrs. Nakata also, as I said earlier, she was quite a active member of the Fujinkai, and they made udon, do you remember the udon and sushi and all those things? They were really the heart and soul of the Buena Vista United Methodist church for many, many years.

MT: I think so.

JT: That whole group of ladies. But do you feel that she was a role model to you in any way, in any ways?

MT: I'm not sure.

JT: But by your work ethic and your devotion to... well, actually, I shouldn't call it a devotion because you became a Methodist overnight. [Laughs]

MT: [Laughs] Right. That's true, you're right.

JT: But you know in those days, I think the church played a big role in their lives. Do you feel that way?

MT: That was their culture. I mean, that was their social life.

JT: It was. They had their bible study, they had their Sunday devotion and meetings after.

MT: And the friends, they had all their friends there.

JT: And their children remained friends. So I think the church community played a big role in...

MT: Oh, I think so, especially for the Isseis.

JT: Yes.

<End Segment 9> - Copyright © 2021 Densho. All Rights Reserved.