<Begin Segment 15>

MA: So your grandparents moved, you said, into the town of Fort Lupton.

NM: First.

MA: What was the town like? Fort Lupton?

NM: It was a small community. And I don't know what they did there, I really don't know. I think they lived there, just a brief time and then they moved to Denver. And my grandfather did gardening and worked at the Denver Country Club, golf course, keep it mowed and stuff. And the flower gardens and all that.

MA: Was there like a Japantown in Fort Lupton? Was there like a collection of restaurants or shops?

NM: Not that I know. No. Church is the only thing I remember.

MA: The Buddhist church?

NM: And I think -- Konishi, well, Gladys -- she would probably know more, because they lived there. They had a big family.

MA: Did you ever sense, during your time in Fort Lupton, that there was any strange feelings between the people who'd been there for a long time, the Japanese Americans who'd been in Fort Lupton for a long time, and then the people who were coming in during the war?

NM: No, because, I think it's because my aunt and uncle were there. Otherwise, there may have been really. And then, well, when I say my aunt and uncle, it's my aunt's husband. You know, uncle. And he had a brother in Henderson. So they were all farmers from way back.

MA: But you think if they, if you hadn't had that connection with your uncle, that maybe it would have been a little more different.

NM: It may have been difficult.

MA: Did you ever hear about anything? Any sort of community tensions like that? Think maybe friends or family that...

NM: No, I don't remember really.

MA: So what was your, was your brother living with you in Fort Lupton during that time as well? He came over with your grandparents.

NM: Yeah, no, he lived with us briefly. He lived on the farm briefly, but then moved to Fort Lupton and then into Denver. So we actually haven't been together that long from childhood, the three of us. We were always separated.

MA: Yeah, it seems like you especially moved around a lot from --

NM: Oh, yes.

MA: -- everywhere, you know. Sacramento to L.A. to Fort Lupton to Denver. How was that for you as child, I mean, moving around so much?

NM: Well, you know, I think it affected me in a way that I didn't want to possess anything. I kept giving things away, I didn't want to hold on to anything. 'Cause every time I move, I think, "Well, I can't take that with me." So, I don't like to possess anything, actually. Just what I need.

MA: Yeah, yeah.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.