<Begin Segment 23>

AI: Would you tell us...

SH: I got married in Tule Lake. I was the very first couple to get married in Tule Lake at that time. One other couple on the same Sunday were married. And, we had the bakery came from Klamath Falls and supplied the bakery goods to the whole camp. And we asked the bakery driver, through the canteen manager, wanted a cake, wanted some flowers on a certain Sunday -- I think it was a Sunday we got married on, I can't remember what day we got married on even -- which he did for us. And so, we did have, at least have flowers and had a cake. Being married that year, was 1940... '2, '42. So from those people that were evacuated and put into camp, I was probably one of the first ones to get married.

AI: It must have been difficult planning a wedding while you were in camp?

SH: Well, it was nothing fancy. We did get... and the people that we needed a cake for and everything, everybody didn't get a piece of cake. But just traditional, have a cake. She didn't get a wedding gown or such, anything like that, she wore her best dress. I have a wedding picture, but I lost it, or misplaced it, it's someplace. We did take a picture.

AI: Do you remember where it was held... your wedding, your actual wedding, where it was held?

SH: One of the barracks, I can't remember. Might have been in the mess hall, I don't know. Each block, well, no, not each block, but for a certain area there was, there was a building set aside for religious services -- one of the barracks. And it wasn't in each block, it was probably covered, maybe four blocks or five blocks. It was one of the barracks, or part of the barracks, set aside for different congregations. They did allow that. They didn't prevent Buddhists from having their church if they wanted to.

AI: And, that was your religion?

SH: Uh-huh.

AI: Did they have a, did you have a priest available to perform your...?

SH: No, like I said, I don't know if I said in this question here, but, I considered myself a Buddhist ever since I was a kid. My folks were, and, but there was no Buddhist reverend when we wanted to get married so a Baptist minister from Sacramento married us.

AI: And then did you have any other kind of celebration that day, or...

SH: No.

AI: Did you mention something about having a ride that evening?

SH: Yes, my neighbor, at that time, and you know him, he was, worked for the motor pool. So he had a car available, got a car, and after we had this in the mess hall, we had some cake and some coffee. Well, he said, "I'll take you for a honeymoon." We knew we couldn't leave, so we went inside perimeter of the whole camp, once around I think. That was our honeymoon. I saw him the other day and we laughed about it.

<End Segment 23> - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.