<Begin Segment 13>

TI: So he, okay, so he studied, became a Catholic, and describe the wedding. Where did you get married?

BH: At Maryknoll. They had a Maryknoll church at that time. It was a very new church right there by Providence Hospital on Jefferson and Sixteenth, between Sixteenth and Seventeenth. So we were the very first Catholics to get married, Japanese Catholics. Somebody said they had another, first wedding was Filipino, but this was not a Filipino church, it was the Japanese church. So we were the very first ones.

TI: And so describe the wedding. How many people were there?

BH: Oh, gosh. Not too many. I didn't know that many people.

TI: And as a Catholic wedding, so it was a full mass that was performed?

BH: Uh-huh.

TI: It must have been special for them because you were a Maryknoll girl, you lived with them.

BH: Maryknoll parishioners all came. Very nice. And Paul's brother became his best man. [Laughs]

TI: And then did Mr. Takizaki sort of give you away?

BH: No, Mr. Rogers gave me away, since I was, didn't have any parents. So he said he'd volunteer to give me away. So it was very nice.

TI: That must have been a pretty happy time for you.

BH: Yes. And the Horiuchis, of course, came, and they said, Mrs. Horiuchi told me, she says, "A bride should never smile when you're..." 'cause a bride is supposed to be very shy or something. During the church service, we were walking back. You know, I was happy, so I was smiling away. And Mrs. Horiuchi says, "Don't smile." And Mrs. Rogers says, "Smile, smile." [Laughs] But I smiled anyway.

TI: So I'm curious, the not smiling part, was that a...

BH: That's Japanese custom, I guess.

TI: Oh, okay. And then Mrs. Rogers said, "Oh, this is America, so smile and show your happiness." And so you ended up smiling, you said.

BH: Oh, yes. My pictures shows it, our wedding picture.

TI: [Laughs] Oh, that's a good story. And so where did you go for your honeymoon?

BH: We went to Wyoming. [Laughs]

TI: So right away you would go to Wyoming?

BH: Uh-huh. Took the train. We had free passes, you know, because if you worked on the railroad.

TI: And so how long was the train ride from Seattle to Wyoming?

BH: It was quite long. It's a day and a half by the time you... night. I remember we had to, our first night was on the train, because we went to Wyoming and then I think we got to Nampa or someplace in Idaho, they changed. So I don't know, I can't quite remember, it was many years ago.

<End Segment 13> - Copyright © 2009 Densho. All Rights Reserved.