Densho Digital Archive - Fred Y. Hoshiyama Interview (denshovh-hfred

<Begin Segment 27>

FH: Something else also happened when I was working -- I mean, right away they gave me a job, and they gave me a part-time work there. And my job was to print the tests and stuff like that. And people would say, "Come on, Fred, tell us, what are some of the questions?" "No, I can't." They heard that's my job, the printings. That's one thing I did. Second was I was outside one time, and they put me through hazing. They call it hazing. And I'm a graduate student, but since I'm brand-new, they put me in a freshman, frosh, they call it the "frosh walk." And you take a toothbrush, you're supposed to scrub it. Hazing, you know, they make you do those humble stuff. I was doing that one day, and a man, six-foot-tall, strong, bushy eyebrows, stopped by and says, "What's your name?" "Fred Hoshiyama." "Oh, Japanese. You know, you're lucky, 'cause you could be like a samurai sword." I said, "What do you mean, samurai sword?" "Double-edge. And you could be a catalyst for Japan, friendship for Japan and America." I never forgot that. His name is John Mott, M-O-T-T. I learned that he is a giant in the YMCA movement, he raised fifty million dollars during World War I, he hired five thousand women, five thousand men, and he had workers at every canteen that he put together all over the United States and Europe during World War I. Fifty million dollars to raise in those days is like two billion today. And so I got to know him later, later, after this, but every time... one day they gave me a Kunsho. Do you know what a Kunsho is? It's the Emperor's award from the Japanese government. And I was awarded a Kunsho in 1997 from the Japanese government. When I received it, I said, "Thank you John Mott." Why? 'Cause I never forgot. He says, "You could be a catalyst." I took the first group to Japan in 1960, youth group, home to home, sister city, youth program, exchange program. As soon as I did that, 1960, Kobe and Seattle started one right away with Kobe, the YMCA. They have a long relationship with Kobe Y and Seattle Y, sister city, then Nagoya and Los Angeles, Tokyo and New York. They started these exchange programs, and they're still doing it, I think. But I had the privilege, thanks to John R. Mott. That was kind of the incentive for me, so I said thank you for when I received that, 'cause that started the program.

TI: Because you think that influenced you, that brief moment...

FH: Oh, no question about it.

TI: When he said that, you thought more of how you could be...

FH: Well, when I was in Springfield, I never forgot that. When opportunity came to do this program, and that helped to bring understanding home to home. Someday a Prime Minister of Japan may be in that group, and the President of the United States may be from here, get to know each other, live in each other's home. That's what brings peace to this world.

TI: So that was, that was a big thing. That was influential.

FH: Oh, that was something big. And then one other thing about John R. Mott. He's such a giant, but he got the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946 for peace, bringing peace to the world. When he was student, nineteen years of age, he stood before the group, conference, and he says, "I challenge you folks. I want one hundred volunteers to go out into the world and to tell them about this idea, YMCA." And within a generation, eighty-nine new nations started a YMCA movement in their country. A movement is not just one Y, it's several Ys, but it's the whole, in each country. Who would think that a nineteen year old guy would have that kind of vision? That's John Mott. And he's such a fundraiser. So I asked him, I said, "What's your secret?" He said, "I have no secret." "Yeah, but you raise all this money. How do you raise a million dollars?" "Fred, it's just as easy to say a million as it is to say one hundred. It's just that you don't have the guts to say million. I choose the person I ask carefully. They got to have the million, then they know how much they're gonna give you. I don't ask for money directly. I try to persuade them with my dream or whatever it is that I want them to help. And then if they agree to my dream, or my vision of something, the vision will come." I said, "Sounds too easy." Well, they ask me, they took me to lunch, and the Japanese American National Museum in 1918, I mean, 1986 or '7, they said, "Fred, we need to have lunch with you." I said, "What's up? I'd be glad to have lunch, but no lunch is free." [Laughs] Well, they said they need to raise money for the Japanese American National Museum, and, "You're the only one we know that had any Y experience raising money." Yeah, but I never raised ten million dollars in my life. I could raise a few dollars. Then I remembered John Mott. You believe in something, you share it, your money will come. And not only did we raise ten million, we had an earthquake, so we had to raise sixteen million and we did it. Then we outgrew this place, we had to build a new pavilion, forty-five million dollars. I said, "Oh, that's impossible. There's no way I could do that." The last day, we had forty-four. Guy standing next to me named Frank Watase, he let us use his home to start campaign in Torrance. I got to know him. Just need a million dollars to reach our goal. We talked to him before, he said, "Oh, no, I can't do it. I can't." He does the Dunkin' Donut or some kind of company. Well, okay. Million dollars.

TI: So on the last day...

FH: Another thing, a story. I would never recommend you do this, but John O'Lay took a job as the president of the Weingart Foundation, and they gave out all kinds of money. So I said, "John, you've got to help me." I phoned him up 'cause I know him that well. You should never phone to raise money, but I violated that. I said, "John, you know the home savings company, foundation lady?" "Oh, sure. We meet every so often." "Why don't you tell her that you'll commit yourself to a million dollars if they will match it for the JANM?" So I've talked to John. They don't give us money before, and so he says, "Well, I'll try. I'll do that for you." He calls me back and he says, "She says okay." Two million, one phone call. That's the fastest I ever did. [Laughs]

TI: And all that came from these, these conversations you had with John Mott, who really, he influenced you about Japan and fundraising?

FH: That's the whole thing I'm getting back to. That John Mott says, "You believe in something, you share the dream, and you select the right people, money will come." So there's sixteen plus forty-five for just one agency.