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MN: When was, around when did you first visit Japan?

JI: I was twelve years old when I went with my mother to Fukuoka. And I spent a year there with her. It was a farmhouse, big farmhouse. I didn't do much. The stream along the side of the house where fish would come, and it ended in a pond at the house. And it was on the beginning of the mountains in Fukuoka there, and we had a lot of trees around. Then had the rice farm, rice and wheat. Of course, we had stream and a pond, and had fishes. It was a nice time when you're twelve years old.

MN: And then you came back (to California).

JI: Yeah.

MN: And you went to Le Conte middle school for a semester?

JI: Yeah, for a semester. Then there was a middle school in between, and I went to Glendale High School.

MN: Now, you also said you were active with the Sage Methodist Japanese church?

JI: I first, when I was twelve years old, I got Baptized at the First Methodist Church in Highland. I went all by myself, (...) and became a member of the church there. Since my parents were busy having the store, I just roamed around climbing the mountains. And then I took judo and did a little judo activities, and kendo. I was pretty good at that. So I didn't get many people bothering me. [Laughs]

MN: So did you help start the Sage Methodist church?

JI: Yes, I joined the Methodist church when I was twelve years old, all by myself.

MN: Did you visit the Christian church on Terminal Island?

JI: No, I didn't do anything in Terminal Island. We didn't live there. Let's see... Glendale... I went to junior high school. From Selma school I went Le Conte junior high for a while. Then the Glendale High School where I graduated.

MN: And then you went to Japan in 1931, a second time.

JI: I went with my mother, spent a year.

MN: You were seventeen years old at the second time you went to Japan.

JI: On the second time, yeah. First time was only twelve.

MN: What did you do in Japan your second time? Did you help with the rice farm?

JI: Let's see. Well, I didn't do much work. I would help when they planted the rice plants, you had about six people lined up and we'd all plant them in, right in uniform, every, six inches apart. And then we'd all be lining, straight line, and we'd just move like that, and plant rice.

MN: Hard work?

JI: Yeah. And I would clean, we had a stream and a pond. I took care of the fish. And we'd have koi to eat once in a while.

MN: Do you remember Japan becoming more militaristic at this time?

JI: Well, I was pretty young, so I wouldn't... I was getting to that point of being involved. Remember one time I was, we did, the boys gathered together and did a little marching. But not much. I didn't get caught up in that military, I guess being, actually being a foreigner. So we came back to United States.

MN: And your mother died in 1933. How did she pass away?

JI: Cancer. Well, she had quite a few children, so... yeah, so she was pretty ill there for a while and then passed away. Rosemead I guess it was.

MN: Who did the funeral arrangements? Was it Fukui?

JI: Yes, I think so. He's the only one we used each time. I guess you know more than I do. [Laughs]

MN: Now, this is during the Great Depression. How was the Ito Brothers store doing?

JI: We did pretty well. We had no problems. We got along. Like our store was, we opened the whole front, and we would display all our fruits and vegetables so that (you could) see it from the street. We got quite a few customers, and some politically well-known people.

MN: But did a lot of people become indebted to you, and did you have to close the business?

JI: Yes, we had quite a few accounts. And a lot of 'em never paid us, 'cause it was Depression time. Then we moved to Rosemead to take over a farm. We did farming there on about 20 acres. We had a stable and two horses. I guess I have some pictures of that. So I was pretty busy gardening in those days, and going to school.

<End Segment 4> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.