<Begin Segment 18>

[Ed. note: This transcript has been edited by the narrator]

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TI: You also mentioned something called the Good...

SA: American Citizenship Club. And if you ask anybody, my peers, we all had to line up. And each classroom (marched) in -- before school started, she actually had free breakfast for some, and that, because -- and she watched the children. We had a very obese (student), and she would make sure that he had a grapefruit every morning. I don't know where she got that. But for the very thin, she had mush. I think she thought we didn't eat, or some people didn't. And she made them (the thin ones), they couldn't take P.E., they had to rest, they had a rest period. You know, like Kay Kato said, she hated it, she had to go and rest when the rest of us were (having fun in P.E. class).

TI: I'm sorry, so how did she know which ones would...

SA: She could observe 'em; she knew. She knew the families and she made sure that the teachers did not send a bad report, 'cause she knew the Japanese and the Chinese parents would really take it out on the child, and some were, they were whipped.

TI: And so the ones that she singled out to rest was...

SA: The thin ones.

TI: Okay. And then she would feed them, you're saying. Or in the mornings she would --

SA: In the morning, if (she) thought they had (no breakfast), she had mush, oatmeal. She was very (compassionate) and then what she taught in the Good American Citizenship Club was she would try to bring in the (rules of) democracy, fairness, honesty, (equality, justice). And the amazing thing is -- maybe I shouldn't even mention it here -- but when the girls ran into (pre-puberty age), she would take all the girls down to the gym to show them how to take care of themselves. And we were amazed, 'cause we wouldn't have ever (known anything), I don't know if our parents would have told us. She would show us, at that era, we had the Kotex (pads) and the tampons. I don't know what she did (for) the boys, but I thought that was remarkable, 'cause she knew we wouldn't get (some of) that information (from home).

TI: And so as an educator, when you think about what she was doing during this time period, again, how innovative, how forward-thinking was she compared to, perhaps, other schools?

SA: Well, the thing is, I couldn't compare to any other school. But when I look back, because I did have a hand in the P.E. curriculum after I got into teaching, but I thought, "This woman was amazing." Well, they were all (great teachers). Ms. Laurie was terrific. She had us looking in mirrors and drawing ourselves, because (all teachers) were (...) specialized. She was (also compassionate, and) after the war, I bumped into her and she was inquiring about Ben Fujita, I don't know if you know him, but he had gone blind from a disease in camp. And she wondered how he was. And (I was) just amazed that she even cared. But they really were wonderful to us. Ms. Phelan taught us songs (...) like Kathleen Mavorneen, she must have been Irish, (and) "The Rose of Tralee," classical songs. And we would have (songs we) never heard (of) had she not brought it to us. She had us singing in (...) parts, and this was in the elementary (years). Well, I see music teachers now, and I don't know if they have the time to do that. But we also had a harmonica club for the few who could, you know, if you came after hours you could learn the harmonica. They did things that, to me, is just terrifically amazing, it's awesome (when you think of their dedication to teaching us).

TI: And how about the more traditional subjects of, you know...

SA: Math.

TI: ...arithmetic, math, reading, writing.

SA: Well, Ms. McQue did a good job (teaching us mathematics; the teachers from kindergarten-third got us reading) extended on into middle school and went to Washington Middle School. There (...) we bumped into another minority, (...) the Jewish population (of the) Garfield (area). So it (made a difference), now for the first time we were merging with a (majority) group of Caucasians, too, and that was different to us.

TI: And how so? When you say different, what was the differences?

SA: Well, (...) we'd never had much to do with Caucasians other than, you know, our missionaries at the church, but we were never invited into homes. And at that, I don't know, it just was not done.

TI: And in general, how did the two groups get along?

SA: Oh, I think we got along well. In fact, (we made some great friendships here, for the first time with other nationalities). I went into Smith Galland, (a Jewish) nursing home, and I looked at the walls, and there were names that I (remembered, like the) Alhadeffs and... so it stays with you. But there, too, (at the middle school, the) art teacher sent me into the cafeteria, (and) let me paint on the wall, and I thought that was astounding. So I didn't know what to put, so I drew "Ole King Cole and his merry old soul" because I figured we're there in the lunchroom, eating his pie or whatever. It was really crazy. But it's kind of amazing that so many were actually so interested in us, and they really cared for us. I think that element is what we needed. We needed to be nurtured.

<End Segment 18> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.