<Begin Segment 11>

TI: So let's talk about when you left Minidoka. So when did you leave Minidoka and where did you go?

MN: Well, I left in June of '45. That was before the war was over. So they were trying to... I'm sure they were trying to relocate everybody. But anyway, I was called into relocation... there were two ladies from the relocation office in Portland that came out to interview people that were, probably wanted to go back to Portland. My father, we didn't have any relatives or anyone like that back east or anything. So anyway, I got... anyway, these two ladies came out, and I was interviewed. I think I had an opportunity to go back east to work, but, of course, we had all our stuff back in Portland and everything, and I didn't think my dad wanted to go back. So anyway, getting back to the story, so these two ladies came, and they called me in to get, for an interview, and they gave me dictation, and I had to type this letter that they dictated and so forth. And I guess it was satisfactory, and so they, so I got clearance to go back to Portland, although the war was still going on. And I had to... my father's friend had gone back to Portland prior, and I was able to stay with them at this University Village in North Portland, the federal housing, and I stayed for about two months, couple of months, anyway, try to get established in my work, and also to find housing for my sister and dad whenever they were able to come. And so I started work with the WRA. I worked as a clerk typist at the National Conference of Christians and Jews. It was in the same building, I think, as the WRA. But anyway, so I worked there during the week, and then on Saturday I would go out to this church and type their bulletin, church bulletin, you know, their church program. So that was my job, first job.

TI: So it kept you pretty busy?

MN: Huh?

TI: It kept you really busy.

MN: Oh, yes. Well, I had to ride the streetcar all the time, buses. And then after that, I worked at the evacuees' property storage building. I was secretary to, or rather I was the property secretary, and I processed all the papers for people that were returning to get their property out of storage there. And I think that's where all the contrabands and everything was stored. And this building happened to be the building that was next door to our home when I was growing up. It was very... I don't know, it was... kind of stirs memories. I didn't realize that this place, actually, I used to go by there all the time and never gave it a thought. I see people in the loading platform and everything. And they used to give me paper, that was it. I remember the writing paper, they had scraps and things, they used to give it to me when I walked by.

TI: Now when you, did you ever get a chance to see what was stored there? This was for the War Relocation Authority or the government holding all the materials of Japanese Americans.

MN: No, I really didn't. It was just a huge storage place with all the boxes and bundles and whatever. So I never did... never did... and when I typed those things up, I really didn't look at everybody's paper. I mean, I wrote, did whatever I had to do.

TI: But what was the process? What did people have to do to get their things back?

MN: Well, I think they... all I recall is what my boss would tell me, to process these people or whatever, get it out of the file and I would type whatever was necessary to get the papers ready. But other than that, I don't know what people must have had to request when they came back through the WRA office, and then they would notify the Property Section that these people were back and had returned and would like to have their... they were cleared to have their possessions back. So I was just sort of, kind of on the receiving end where I finalized the papers.

TI: Now earlier you talked about going there and turning in your camera and binoculars at the police department. Now, were those things stored at this place? Did you get those things back?

MN: We got it, we did get it back, so I'm sure I must have, probably processed my own papers. But I'm sure we did get it back.

TI: But that was stored at that same place?

MN: Uh-huh.

TI: Interesting.

<End Segment 11> - Copyright © 2014 Densho. All Rights Reserved.