<Begin Segment 17>

MN: Now your job at Poston, how did you get your first job and what was it?

DM: Gee, my first job was... oh, I was assigned as the milk truck driver. My job was to meet the truck that came in from L.A. about three times a week with a load of cartons of milk. So four o'clock we'd meet the truck and load our portion of the milk to distribute it to the camp, kitchens in Camp II and III. And each kitchen were given so many quarters depending on how many kids in that block. So, in other words, adults didn't get milk, just the kids.

MN: Now you said four o'clock, is this four o'clock in the morning?

DM: In the morning. That's when the truck would arrive from L.A.

MN: And you meet them at the gate?

DM: No, he drove into the yard, into the warehouse where we'd meet 'em. And in a way, it was handy because anything we needed from the outside, he would purchase it for us and bring it in. Things that we couldn't obtain in camp. So I worked there for a couple of years, got to know the kitchen help in all the kitchens in Block 2 and 3. About that time, they were looking for help with the garage. So I applied and started working at the garage. The garage took care of the trucks for the camp, and the cars of the administrators. Of course, I took two years of auto mechanics in high school, so I knew a little bit about maintenance.

MN: How far was the garage from Block 59?

DM: The garage was in the area of the administration building, and Block 59 was at the other corner of the camp. So being the furthest away from the camp, I was assigned a truck to pick up the mechanics in the morning and bring 'em to the garage and take 'em home at night.

MN: So you're the one that had to pick everybody up on the way to the garage in 59, and then you did the reverse on the way home?

DM: Uh-huh, the reverse.

<End Segment 17> - Copyright © 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.