Densho Digital Archive
Densho Visual History Collection
Title: Esther Takei Nishio Interview
Narrator: Esther Takei Nishio
Interviewer: Sharon Yamato
Location: Los Angeles, California
Date: September 21, 2011
Densho ID: denshovh-nesther-01-0015

<Begin Segment 15>

SY: There were a lot of social activities.

EN: Yes, I think they had socials. Different blocks put on dances, and I think the young men had baseball games and things like that, so everyone tried to keep busy.

SY: Were there many your age that you could hang around with?

EN: Quite a few, yes.

SY: And both, I mean, did you make more girlfriends there or more male friends?

EN: Yes, but unfortunately I don't remember all the names.

SY: But you didn't, were able to hang out with other kids.

EN: Yes. Right.

SY: And did you eat with your family? Or did you --

EN: No, that's one of the things that keeps cropping up, I think. All the young people had meals with their friends and not with the family units.

SY: Yeah, especially if your mother was working, right?

EN: Right.

SY: So you really don't remember too much about what you did on the, since you didn't, it was, you didn't have to go to school.

EN: No, I didn't go to school. I was already put to work.

SY: And so you really did have pretty much free time when you were, when you weren't...

EN: Right, and I remember my girlfriend and I started a little club for, like eleven, twelve year old girls, and we were their advisors, helped them have fun. That's all I remember.

SY: Really? That's nice. And you led young girls, a group of, a fairly small group of --

EN: Cute, cute little girls.

SY: This is the same girlfriend from Santa Anita?

EN: Right, the one that introduced herself. She was in our, she turned up in our block, which was very fortunate.

SY: I see. That's nice.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.