<Begin Segment 6>

DM: During those, those years in Seattle, did your parents participate in any of the community activities or community associations?

AM: Well, I know there was a Wakayama-ken, there was a Wakayama-ken gathering that took place every year, and I remember we always went to a Chinese restaurant, which I always thought was amazing, that Japanese would go to a Chinese restaurant only when they were celebrating. And I don't know whether it because the food was cheaper or whether it was different, I don't, all I remember is that when the Japanese celebrated, they always went to a Chinese restaurant, which I thought was interesting. My father became quite interested in kendo, and he joined the kendokai, I think it was called, which was run by a, somebody from Japan who taught kendo. And so my father learned kendo and became quite good at it, apparently, because he did tournaments and demonstrations, I remember 'cause I went to some of his programs when they had them. And I remember once asking him, "Could I please learn how to do kendo?" and he says, no, that was not for girls, only for boys. And the reason he did this, he said, was because he felt that the discipline was good in that he thought that the Nisei boys needed to have more discipline. So that sort of follows with my going to a Roman Catholic school for more discipline.

DM: So did your father also teach kendo?

AM: Yes, he was also... one of things that I found out in looking at some of the National Archives archival materials, is that he was actually a treasurer of the kendokai, and that's probably what got him in trouble.

DM: We will definitely follow up with that.

<End Segment 6> - Copyright ©2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.