<Begin Segment 9>

TI: So describe to me what Maryknoll was like when you went there?

BH: Well, it was, it was nice because away from the farming. But we did our little chore. Everybody had to... 'cause I was fifteen, so we took care of the little kids. So there were a whole lot of little kids that parents were gone, or one died, one of the parents died, so they sent the children there.

TI: And about how many children were...

BH: Oh, we had quite a few, I don't know. I couldn't tell you how many. But they had parents, too, but they had hotels, and I guess they had to put them someplace, so they used to have a bus that used to pick up all the kids. And then they spent the day at Maryknoll and then they'd take the, the brothers would take them back to their hotel or wherever they lived.

TI: But then after they took those kids home, how many kids were left there to stay overnight?

BH: No, I was the only one that stayed. The rest were all... 'cause one of the Takizaki girls, of course, lived with their parents.

TI: And so when you were there, the only child there, who took care of you at night?

BH: No, no, there were nuns there. And there were other little kids, their parents were separated or mothers gone or fathers gone. So they were just left alone. So with the younger children, well, we took care of them after they started to live at Maryknoll.

TI: So that's what I'm trying to get a sense of, who lived at Maryknoll? How many people were there?

BH: Gosh, I don't know.

TI: Was it more like under...

BH: Ten.

TI: And were you one of the older ones?

BH: I was the oldest.

TI: And so you were called upon to help out?

BH: Yeah, so we help out, give the kids bath and so forth.

TI: So roughly about ten children, you were the oldest.

BH: There were several other girls, too, there were other older kids, but they were Filipinos and other nationalities.

TI: So of the ten or so children, how many were Japanese?

BH: That lived there?

TI: Uh-huh.

BH: I don't know. Not too many.

TI: Okay, just a few.

BH: Just a few. I think there was Chinese, I don't know. There were about, seems like there were about twelve or so that lived there, and the bus would take them around.

TI: And how were the nuns in terms of taking care of you?

BH: Oh, they were real good.

TI: And during this time, who was the Father?

BH: Father Murrett. He was a nice man. He was jolly, he can play the piano. Any popular song the girls would say, "Play this, Father," and he'd, from memory he'd just pound the piano, real nice.

TI: And then would people sing along with him?

BH: Oh, yeah. Later on I met him in Kyoto, years later, with some of the nuns. They have a place over there in Kyoto someplace.

TI: That must have been special.

BH: Uh-huh.

TI: And what was a typical day like at Maryknoll for you? Like on a Saturday, for instance?

BH: We had to do all the help around the, clean the house.

TI: And I'm guessing around this time is when you were, you were Baptized?

BH: I don't know how soon after that, I don't know. The accident was in July, and that was May, the following May, I was Baptized.

TI: And that's when you were named Bernadette?

BH: Uh-huh.

TI: And at that point you went from Mary to Bernadette?

BH: Yes. Well, actually, it's Mary Bernadette, the whole thing. [Laughs]

TI: Oh, so Mary Bernadette?

BH: But it was too much, so I just use Bernadette.

TI: And I'm curious why they didn't just use Mary.

BH: Well, I don't know. 'Cause I wanted Bernadette because of the girl, there's a girlfriend that I visited, a neighbor of ours, and she used to visit all the time, and her name was Bernadette. And I said, "Gee, that's a pretty name." And so I said, "Oh, that's a good name. When it comes time to be Baptized, I want that Bernadette." So that's why.

TI: Okay so you were a pretty strong-willed woman. You kind of knew what you wanted.

BH: Not much. [Laughs]

TI: Well, for your name, for instance, rather than just go along with Mary, you found a --

BH: Well, I kept that Mary, too, so it's Mary Bernadette, actually.

TI: Okay. I'll have to put that in my notes.

<End Segment 9> - Copyright © 2009 Densho. All Rights Reserved.