<Begin Segment 32>

MN: When you returned, did you take advantage of the GI Bill?

YK: Yeah, uh-huh. But see, I had gone in in September so I couldn't get out early for to go back to school. So I got out by saying I'm going to work in my brother's nursery, he's my summer occupation. But then I went, decided to go back to school, graduate school. So I went to USC City and Regional Planning, 'cause I always liked larger scale (design). Of course, city planning was a little bit larger than I had in mind, but I went through there and there were only four of us grad students there. And it was only a year and a half course, but we had to write a thesis. Well, I delayed that, and one of the instructors had a consulting business, so he hired the three of us to go to work for him. So I worked for this private consultant who was doing master plans. The federal government had a 701 program whereby they would give grants to cities who did their master planning. So we would be the consultants to go in there, we'd prepare the whole application and everything and do master plans for small cities throughout southern California. And gradually I was able to do the whole master plan for Azusa and El Centro, plus working on the other cities with the other main associates. So that's how I became city planner, or I call it an urban planner.

MN: And I think you, at this time, you worked on Azusa and El Centro, and then also West Covina, Baldwin Park and South Pasadena?

YK: Right, that's right.

MN: Which were memorable cities that you worked on?

YK: Oh, I don't know. Probably El Centro because it was way down there, and I was really on my own. And so I really did the whole thing there, including getting the plan approved by the planning commission and the city council. So I did everything on that.

MN: And then around this time in '64, you married Lilian Kitagawa from Hawaii.

YK: Right.

MN: When you were courting her, did you share with her about your World War II experience at Tule Lake?

YK: No, not at all.

MN: When did you share that with her?

YK: Oh, much later. We really didn't talk too much about camp, you know, all of us Niseis, we really didn't tell our kids about camp.

MN: Now, when you asked Lilian to marry you, and when Lilian told her parents, her mother was very upset because you didn't go through the traditional route.

YK: Yeah, that's right. She said, well, first she was worried that she had married someone outside the race, and then when she told her I was Japanese, and she said, "Yeah, how come he didn't ask us properly?" So I had to write an apology letter asking them to let me marry their daughter, and I would take good care of her.

MN: And where were you married?

YK: Actually, a church in West Lost Angeles, but our minister was from the church in (Boyle Heights) Evergreen Church was just too small for us.

MN: Do you remember what you wore?

YK: Yeah, a tuxedo.

MN: Was it yours or rented?

YK: Oh, rented.

MN: Was Lilian able to get a wedding dress?

YK: Actually, she had a friend who was the same size, so she borrowed her wedding dress. [Laughs] She was looking around, but she says, "Oh, wait a minute. So and so just got married a year or two earlier," and she says, "You still have it?" So she borrowed it.

MN: Where did you honeymoon?

YK: Oh, where did we honeymoon? Oh, actually, we honeymooned in New Jersey. There was a friend who had a condominium, but they were going on vacation, so we used their condominium in New Jersey, and it was convenient to go to New York City and also to Niagara Falls, so that's where we had our (honeymoon).

MN: Now about a year and a half after you were married, you moved to Monterey Park, and there's an area there informally referred to as Banzai Hill? Did you move into that area?

YK: No, we didn't want to move into an ethnic, what do you call it? Anyway, not a barrio, but anyway, so we found a house just a few miles away in Monterey Park that was conveniently located.

<End Segment 32> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.