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MA: And I wanted to also ask you a little bit about your father who has an interesting background. And can you talk about his childhood in Japan, where he was born and a little bit about his background?

GK: My father was born in Gifu, Japan, that's in the middle of Honshu island. And at one time, his family were quite well-off. They had land and other things. But then later, their, the luck changed and they were not as wealthy as they were before. Then a big earthquake hit Gifu, and the father died in the earthquake and the mother was left with, I think, seven children. So my father wrote that he was one of the children that was thrown out of the window to save his life. And so about four of the children were placed in an orphanage, a Christian orphanage. And so that's where he grew up. (...) I have a little record of his life, and he said that when the orphanage was not very wealthy, and so a lot of times the children had to go out and sell pencils or other little things to bring a little money into the orphanage. And many times the children were made fun of because they were trying to sell things. So it was not an easy life, and a lot of times they didn't have enough food. And so I think it was a harsh bringing up.

MA: And was this a Christian orphanage, was it affiliated with the church?

GK: Yes. I don't know which denomination, but yes, the man heading it was a reverend, Reverend Igarashi. And my father was able to meet some American missionaries while there, and so they really helped him shape his later life.

MA: And what are the reasons that he came to the United States?

GK: Well, I think to better his life. And I think he spoke to these American missionaries and they said, "Well, if you want to better your life, why don't you come to America, then?" So I think that's why he had the connection to come to the United States.

MA: Do you know how old he was when he came over?

GK: I believe he was about seventeen.

MA: Wow, that's so young.

GK: It is young, uh-huh. And I think he came with very little money, all by himself. And so I think he ended up in the San Francisco area. And it was sort of a Japanese community at that time. But he decided that, "Well, if I want to learn English, I can't just stay in this Japanese community, I have to get out." So he traveled to Texas and went to school and then later he went to Yale for his master's. When he was in Texas, he went to a college called Simmons College, which is now Hardin Simmons University. He made many friends there.

MA: And at that time, was he interested in becoming a pastor, do you know?

GK: I think maybe that's when he started thinking that he wanted to become a minister, yes. And then that's why he went on to Yale to get his master's. And I believe that was in the theological area.

<End Segment 2> - Copyright ©2009 Densho. All Rights Reserved.