Densho Digital Repository
Densho Visual History Collection
Title: Mary Kinoshita Ikeda Interview
Narrator: Mary Kinoshita Ikeda
Interviewers: Tom Ikeda (primary); Barbara Yasui (secondary)
Location: Seattle, Washington
Date: April 28, 2022
Densho ID: ddr-densho-1000-510-1

<Begin Segment 1>

TI: So today is April 28, 2022, and we're here with Mary Kinoshita Ikeda, who actually is my mom, also. I'm doing the interview, Tom Ikeda. Helping is Barb Yasui, and on camera is Dana Hoshide. And so, Mom, I'm just going to start by asking, so when and where were you born?

MI: I was born in Seattle, May 18, 1927.

TI: Okay, so that makes you ninety-five years old?

MI: Well, I'll be ninety-five next month.

TI: You'll be ninety-six next month.

MI: No, ninety-five next month. 1927-22, ninety-five.

TI: Okay. That's right, that's right, ninety-five. Why did I say ninety-six? I guess I get confused about that. So you'll both be ninety-five, so Dad would also be ninety-five. And we're doing this at the Lakeshore retirement community where you and Dad live right now. And when you were born, what was the full name given to you at birth?

MI: It was Mayko, M-A-Y-K-O, Kinoshita.

TI: And where does "Mary" come from?

MI: Well, when I got baptized at Maryknoll, then they gave me the name Mary.

TI: Oh, okay, that's interesting. I didn't know that. So let's talk about your siblings. Let's talk about going from the oldest to the youngest.

MI: Yeah. Well, Hiroko Imelda Kiga is my oldest sister.

TI: And she was born in 1921, is what we have in the records.

MI: Okay.

TI: And so interesting, so Imelda, was that her baptized name?

MI: Baptism name, uh-huh. Otherwise it was Hiroko.

TI: And then after Hiroko?

MI: And then it was Francis Tsukasa Kinoshita, was my brother that was killed in action.

TI: Okay, and he was born in 1923?

MI: Okay. And then Mary Jane Kajiko Hashisaki.

TI: And she was born 1924.

MI: We were all about eighteen months apart. And then Irene Ishiko Tanabe.

TI: And she was born in 1925, so maybe another eighteen months later.

MI: And then Mary...

TI: Mayko.

MI: Mayko Ikeda in 1927. And then Chikara, Charles Chikara Kinoshita was born eighteen months after.

TI: Yeah, in 1928. So there were six of you.

MI: Yeah, six of us.

TI: And so those were the ones I know, too. Were there any ones who, like, didn't survive childbirth or anything like that? I don't think there were, but I just wanted to ask.

MI: They all...

TI: They all lived.

<End Segment 1> - Copyright © 2022 Densho. All Rights Reserved.