<Begin Segment 24>

MN: Now, when did your family leave Tule Lake?

TH: We left in March of 1946, March 17th, as far as I remember.

MN: How did you feel about leaving camp after four years of imprisonment?

TH: Of course, you feel uneasy, you don't know where to go, no place to go.

MN: Where did your family go after camp?

TH: At first we were able to find a place to sleep at the Buddhist church, Oakland Buddhist church, and probably stayed for a few days. Then we found a place in Richmond, public housing in Richmond, where a lot of Japanese families moved also. Both sides of the Gordon Avenue, both sides of the street were all Japanese families.

MN: So you know this resettlement time, how hard was it, I mean, compared to going into camp, how would you compare resettlement after camp?

TH: Well, fortunately, somebody found us a place to live. And we were also still together with Japanese family people, so that was kind of nice. And eventually, several people from the housing project started working at the same place. So we rode in carpools.

MN: Is this where you were working at the Simmons mattress company?

TH: Yeah.

MN: And then you went to California College of Arts and Crafts?

TH: Yeah, that's a little bit afterwards.

MN: How did you pay for your tuition?

TH: Well, I think the tuition at that time was very reasonable. Besides, I wasn't taking the full course, like I wasn't trying to receive a degree or anything, so I attended as a special student, taking whatever class I wanted to take.

MN: And what kind of classes were you taking?

TH: Well, I took a lot of life drawing, because I figured I would learn a lot by taking life drawing class. And also take oil painting, because I went to summer session. And through the teachers, instructors, I was able to have a small one-man show and also find a contact with an owner of a gallery in Oakland.

<End Segment 24> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.