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TI: Okay. So after a while, you went from the Portland Assembly Center to Hunt.

SI: Hunt, Idaho.

TI: Hunt, Idaho. So what was that like for you, going to Hunt, Idaho? It's a very different climate than...

SI: Yeah, everybody lived in barracks. I don't know how many, forty-something barracks that was at Hunt. Seattle people went first, and then I lived in Block 30, and my cousins lived in Block 40 or something. But there wasn't.. about that much, quite a bit of people there at one place.

TI: Now, I'm curious, I like to ask this question of people who were at Minidoka. There were people from different parts, like from Oregon, Portland, you had Seattle people. You had people from Alaska also.

SI: I don't know about that.

TI: There were some people from Alaska.

SI: I didn't know about that last thing.

TI: I'm just wondering, were there different, did you notice the different groups from different areas, and did people kind of stay together?

SI: No. After we'd go to school, I never knew the difference, because everybody mixed up, you know. But we knew that the people in the Block 1 and up to twenty-something, was mostly Seattle people.

TI: I know my mom was Block 16, and I can't remember what block my dad was.

SI: That's Seattle, isn't it?

TI: Yeah. And they're both Seattle.

SI: Then after my block, I think it was more of the Oregon people who came later. I think the Seattle people went first.

TI: And so what was camp life like for you? I mean, you're a little younger than my parents, and my parents did a lot of the dances and socializing.

SI: Yeah, I think you can go to do those things, you know. And the churches were active, both Christians and the Buddhists. I think... I don't know how long I was in the Girl Scouts, but it was interesting.

TI: Well, so at Minidoka, you were with the Girl Scouts?

SI: Yeah.

TI: Now, as a Girl Scout, did you ever take field trips outside?

SI: Yeah, we went outside. I was trying to remember what was that town... we would walk, I think. It wasn't too far, but we would walk to town. I can't remember the name of the town.

TI: Yeah, there's... wasn't that Hunt? They had Twin Falls, that's further.

SI: Oh, yeah, that's farther. But there was a closer one, I don't know how many miles. But we used to just walk.

[Interruption]

TI: But then when you --

SI: Eden.

TI: Eden, that's right.

SI: Eden. I kind of remembered Eden. Did you remember that?

TI: Yeah, I remember driving through that when you go to the camp itself.

SI: I think we just walked there.

TI: I mean, it's a real small town.

SI: So I think we were able to walk.

TI: And when you walked to town, what was there? What would you like to do?

SI: Gee, I really don't know what I did, I don't remember.

TI: But I was wondering, as a Girl Scout, did you... would they have, they have different attractions. Isn't it like the lava beds or something, they have that there? They have some natural wonders nearby. Treasure Valley, which is a little further, they have that, and I was wondering if you guys took field trips to places like that.

SI: No, I wouldn't go too far. I can't remember, not that far. But Twin Falls, I think they let us go to go shopping or something, I think, in Twin Falls. But Eden is where we walked with the Girl Scouts.

TI: Yeah, that makes sense. And Twin Falls is too far to walk.

SI: Yeah, Twin Falls. And there was another town closer that I picked potatoes. Potatoes we harvest at school time, I think I was in high school then. I think we'd go out and live in some farmer's home, and one month, when the potatoes were ready to pick, they wanted workers. So I remember picking potatoes with a few other Japanese girls from the camp.

TI: And would your sister be with you, too, usually, your twin sister?

SI: No, I don't think she went.

TI: Oh, because she's back reading, right? [Laughs]

SI: I don't think she went, just a certain group went. I don't remember her whether she went or not. I doubt it. She probably didn't want to work in the fields, but I think we wanted to work to make some money. [Laughs]

TI: Yeah, people did that because the pay was better than what people were getting inside camp.

<End Segment 10> - Copyright © 2023 Densho. All Rights Reserved.