<Begin Segment 21>

MN: Now let me ask you about your college life. After you graduated from high school, was it... your parents (who encouraged you to go to college). Was it hard for you to kind of figure your way around the college system?

AS: I had no idea (...) about college. Thanks to dear Roku who told me, "No matter what, you go." And I just went, primarily because of Dr. Mayer, who encouraged me to go on to school and told me where to go. And that was it, I just went without knowing anything about it.

MN: Which college did you...

AS: Loyola.

MN: How did you afford...

AS: Didn't have a cent. In those days, (...) you enrolled, (filling out) all these long application forms, (which they called) railroad tickets, and they're reams of paperwork. After you fill it out, you (stood) in line to pay, and I didn't have a cent. This man, I still remember him, had on glasses and (asked for a check). I said, "I don't have any money," and he just looked at me. He was just, he couldn't get over it. He said, "Well, now, have you thought about a loan?" I said, "No." He said, "We'll you'll have to fill this paper out." To this day I can't get over how, the way the young students have to go to school and have to have so much, I didn't have a cent, and I did it. All due to Roku, who said, "If you have a will, you can do it." My parents had no idea, no concept of what you had to do.

MN: Were you able to get scholarships also?

AS: The only way was after the first year, which I borrowed, and after that I got scholarships every year, and then I paid off my loan in one year after I got out. That's a long time ago.

MN: Can you share with us the significance of the Beta Epsilon Honor Society pin you got?

AS: Oh, my gosh, that's an honor society for the med techs. They actually had a school called Medical Technology at Loyola, and that was one of the reasons why I went there, 'cause that's the only school that offered it.

MN: You graduated in three years. How were you able to do that?

AS: At that time, the Korean War was starting, and they decided to have an accelerated program. So we went through the whole summer to get out in three years; they wanted us to get out fast. I'm very thankful for that.

MN: Now I'm gonna go back a little bit and ask about your working life of when you were back in your teenage years. Now, how old were you when you started to look for a part-time job?

AS: Part-time job? Well, I first started when I was fourteen. I just walked into a florist. I'm not artistic at all, I lasted twenty-four hours and I was fired the next day.

MN: What did you do after that?

AS: Starting soliciting on the phone, selling photos.

MN: But then you eventually, you ended up with Dr. Mayer?

AS: (Yes). I don't know how that -- well, like I said, through word of mouth and following through from this ophthalmologist, I guess, with introductions. I guess that's how we did it.

<End Segment 21> - Copyright &copy; 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.