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AI: Well, so you spent your early years in, very close to Loomis, was it?

HK: Yes. We moved to Loomis from Sacramento. Loomis is, was settled by Danish, and I don't know, people like that. And so they, they, it was forest, and they pulled up the trees and cultivated or made them into, into ranches. And by the time the Japanese moved in, they were ready to sharecrop with them, and they were owners of the land. And they had already planted the trees, so that the, the trees were bearing fruit, and so they were sharecroppers and some rented and some of 'em just worked. But we were there, I think, about two years. I remember taking the bus to school about four or five miles, and I was about six or so. And so I remember having missed the bus a couple of times, and the principal of the school, whom everyone was afraid of, drove me home. [Laughs] And he got one of the older boys to direct him, and one of the boys had worked on the farm in summer, so he knew where we lived, and he directed Mr. Gates. And Mr. Gates dropped me home. My parents couldn't believe that the principal of the school would bring this little kid home.

But after a couple of years, my father bought the store, and these people who had this fish market had made enough money, I don't know how much, but enough to go back to Japan. So they were selling the store and this, the fixtures and the stock. And we bought that, and so we moved to town, and the reason for the move was that my mother had developed hay fever, and she had gone to the doctor, and there was no cure for that. So they decided maybe she better move out of the ranch. And so the best, best solution they could think of was that we would all go to Japan, and my father would remain. And so we had, had our pictures taken in our new, new clothing, and we were all ready, we had the passport photos, and then he, he heard that the store was on sale, so he bought that. And so that Japan trip was called off. And really shaped my, my life.

AI: Well, and I think you said earlier, that was about 1928 that he bought the store.

HK: Yes, 1928 was a very good year, where they made quite a bit of money. I don't know, but for that time, it was good. And so they were able to consider move-, changing lifestyles.

<End Segment 2> - Copyright © 2004 Densho. All Rights Reserved.