<Begin Segment 15>

DG: And so I guess this is along those lines, we're now currently building this memorial. Can you tell me what your feelings and what your hopes are for the memorial? What you hope it stands for and represents?

ES: Well, I think it's, it's a good thing for people to remember that this did happen, and to know that it happened to these people on the island here, a lot of them, and that they did suffer a lot and they lost a lot. And I don't... I think they should realize that it really shouldn't happen again, even to other races. Because a lot of people, I don't think they really care unless something like this is built like that. You know, they'll read it and look at it and said this actually happened. Although, if there's nothing there, they're not going to look it up in the archives or anything like that. But if it's there to see, I think that they would take it into account. And I think lots of time the, the schools mention it, too, I think. Or the National Park Service will say these things... there are things like that established there that people could go read and see that this actually happened. I mean, just like in D.C., all these things are written down and people go to see it and read it and they say, "Yeah, this really happened in this year." So I think that's important.

DG: And one of the reasons Bainbridge Island has been chosen for this site is because not only were you the first...

ES: Right, we were the first ones to move.

DG: But as well, I think... how do feel that Bainbridge Island was a unique community compared to what other Japanese...

ES: Yeah. I don't know why they chose us first. I don't know if it was more, we were more in danger zone of doing the, doing sabotage or what... I, that's something I don't understand, why it was the first.

DG: Some say because Bainbridge Island was an enclosed community, you were almost like a sample group. You were a small community that they could try making, forcing to make this move to see how it would go when they made everybody else go. I've heard that.

ES: Oh, see, I've never heard that.

DG: Well, and I guess, what I'm asking, too, is, is how do you think your experience, being part of the Bainbridge Island community, is different than say what people went through maybe who lived in Seattle or other, or even California?

ES: Well, I think, I think learning to be close to each other... I mean, somehow we don't see the others that often, but somehow when you mention them they're still part of us. Because we went through together on all these things, that we have a lot of things in common. Whereas in a big community, I think it's a little bit different. You don't know everybody, but like on the island, but if you mention anybody, we know, we know them all. And so we all traveled together, went to the same camp, went back to another, other camp, and we knew what a lot of their lives were like, you know, kids that got married and had kids. Who was now living here or living there. So...

[Interruption]

DG: So again, tell me about how Bainbridge Island was unique and that your community was unique compared to...

ES: Well, because we knew most of each other. We knew their families and the children. And we all went through so much together, a lot of the same experiences together. So, when we get together we could always talk about those kind of things that we went through. So, I think that's why we're... lotta people say, "Well, they're so, they're rather cliquish," but we couldn't help it because we just, when see each other we just talk about so many things: "How is your family and your brothers? They moved away, or where are they?" Those kind of things. And the schooling that they went to or what are they doing today, and so it's just that we know them better. It's like, I would think like part of the family. And all these get together, we had the picnics and things, we all shared together on those things.

DG: And how do you think the larger Bainbridge Island community also affected how your return was? So not just the Japanese community but the entire Bainbridge community...

ES: Yeah, I think that they really helped. I think the Niseis and Sanseis and Yonseis have spread out lot more. I mean, they're integrating into the community and I think that's great. I mean, because they have the financing to do it now, they're able, they have good jobs and I think it's because the Niseis did help to, to get them there to where they are. And so they're, I'm glad they're able to spread out and work into the community more and be exposed to a lot of these things, that they know there are Japanese there, so I think that's great.

DG: All right.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2006 Densho. All Rights Reserved.