<Begin Segment 30>

SY: And your children are all...

MK: I'm proud of them. They're all doing well.

SY: You put them all through school and so they're all living in different parts of the city?

MK: Well, my daughter lives in Dallas, Texas, but they have a condo here in Huntington Beach so I see them about once a month and then my son is director of the Rancho Cucamonga Libraries there and my other son works as a chemist down in Santa Clarita so they're all doing okay.

SY: And do have you noticed that they have the same value of the importance of volunteering?

MK: Sometimes I kind of doubt that but when I ask them to buy something, they'll buy tickets and things. I think my daughter would really get... she can get really involved in something (but) she is in Texas I know (she volunteers for) different types of things.

SY: Not so much the Japanese American story?

MK: No, right.

SY: And do they ask you about that? Do you talk much about to them about that?

MK: I think they get more and more interested now 'cause when they call they ask where I am and so I have a chance to say what I'm doing. But I don't know, I think the young kids, they live in a different world than we do. Oh, I must say that I have a brand new great grandson.

SY: Great grandson.

MK: Great grandson.

SY: So it's your...

MK: Granddaughter's.

SY: One of your son's...

MK: My daughter's daughter.

SY: Your daughter's daughter's son.

MK: I just had to mention that.

SY: So the family is growing and what would you like, how would you like the Japanese American story, what would you like it to be after you're gone? What would you like to see in terms of community, all of the things that you are involved with?

MK: I just hope that the organizations continue to grow, if not grow, at least tell the story because it's going to get lost and I think it's part of history here, we need to have everyone aware of it. Especially our own children, I think it's so important for them to get involved in this and I will tell them buy this tape. Get involved, kids.

SY: And hopefully your great grandson will get to know about you through this.

MK: It's amazing. I have one grandson who is interested in all of what I'm doing. I'm pretty sure he is, and I think more so than (my) children.

SY: Skipped a generation.

MK: Yeah.

SY: That's good so you have to keep talking, Mary.

MK: They're all hapa kids but you know, they're proud to be Japanese too.

SY: That's great. Well, thank you very much I think that was a wonderful ending to this.

MK: Thank you.

<End Segment 30> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.