<Begin Segment 29>

SY: Over the years, what was your role at the museum?

MK: At one time -- can I say it -- I did get the (Miki) Tanimura Outstanding Volunteer Award but that's because I chaired the making of two cookbooks there, for there, was a big fundraiser there. And I headed several committees there.

SY: And the Tanimura award is the top volunteer award. And it's given to a volunteer every year for the past...

MK: Probably past twenty years now.

SY: And then you still had other jobs at the museum besides that? Besides doing the cookbook so what other kinds of things do you do for the museum?

MK: Well, let me see, like I said, the cookbook was one thing I think that was really good. I chaired the committees for dress code, that type of thing.

SY: Dress code?

MK: Don't see it too much now but then at that time when we first started we had a dress code.

SY: Among the volunteers or among the staff?

MK: Volunteers.

SY: I see.

MK: And then I was on events and recognition committees and that type of thing for different volunteer recognition events, whatever the opportunity came up I had a chance to do it I would do it.

SY: And this was after you retired that you started doing all this work?

MK: Right.

SY: And ended up taking up how much time of your...

MK: Well, I became a regular Friday volunteer. We'd go all day but meetings in between sometimes I'd go once or twice a week. But for over twenty years I've gone every Friday, I think just about every Friday and still continue to do that. And now we have tour groups, the school tour groups that come in and most of the time they're 100 plus kids that come in. We teach them origami or show them around some of the exhibits and all so there's still plenty to do. I love to work the front desk there because that way I can see people as they come in, so I volunteered to do that a couple hours during the day.

SY: So that's a big part of your week and your life too. And then what exactly are you doing now for Go for Broke? What kinds of things are you doing?

MK: Well, like I was saying, they need funds so we're selling these tickets for opportunity drawings so I'm just going out trying to do what I can (...).

SY: And you're obviously good at it.

MK: No, I don't know about that. I have a lot of friends... or ex friends.

SY: You know a lot of people, Mary, you have a lot of people to go to for, to sell these tickets.

MK: Try to go to different people for different organizations.

SY: And how about your family? Do you still stay really in close touch with most of your family?

MK: (Yes), we still have... like my sisters Dorothy and Sachi we're just within three blocks of each other so hardly a day goes by that we don't contact each other there. And then on George's side we have a very close knit family too so I'm very fortunate.

SY: So you have lots of people.

MK: Good support.

SY: And Sachi, I want to mention Sachi, your sister Sachi actually wrote a book about your family.

MK: Right.

SY: And how did that come about?

MK: On her eighty-eighth birthday my daughter published, I guess we call it self-published a book. So many people have asked for it we've had to re-order several times now.

SY: And what kinds of things did she talk about?

MK: She talked a lot about her camp life. She had a lot of experiences when she went to camp and she talked about the family too.

SY: Right.

MK: She should keep writing. She has a lot of short stories. A couple that were in the L.A. Times so she had some good stories there. I think she writes very well.

SY: You have a creative side to your family.

MK: She took a creative writing class so that's when she started.

<End Segment 29> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.