<Begin Segment 5>

JD: I assume that when you came back to Bainbridge Island, that was the beginning of your working 24/7, which probably continues.

JH: Yeah, that's right. Fact is, John, I have to admit that I said at one time I'll never be a nurseryman because of the rigors of the job. Fact is, I was hired to work at the American Marine Bank, and ready to go to work the next Monday, but then Friday I got my draft notice. [Laughs] So I never became -- I could have been a banker instead of a nurseryman. How fate works.

JD: Wear a nice suit, go into an office? [Laughs] What year was that? That must have been...

JH: '52. Oh, no, excuse me. '58. It was after college.

JD: '58 you got a draft notice?

JH: Uh-huh.

JD: Amazing. Then did you do military service? What did you do?

JH: Yes, I did. I had the opportunity to go to Europe, and I'm thankful for that. It was a wonderful experience.

JD: Were the effects of the World War II and the separation and discrimination between the Caucasian community and the Japanese community, did that affect your time in the military or was it already fairly...

JH: Oh, no, there was no thought of that, no problem there. We lived in these Quonset huts in the army, and there was diverse people from all places and various creeds. There was kind of a wonderful experience, I thought, to meet all these people. I'll say my opinion sometimes, to say what I thought, but... [laughs] But it was an interesting experience.

JD: They were different from people you --

JH: They certainly were. [Laughs]

JD: That you'd never known before.

JH: That's right.

JD: Were you stationed in Germany?

JH: No, in France.

JD: For a couple of years?

JH: Thirteen months. It was fun. We went to Paris almost every weekend. But I went to see the museums and the art and all that stuff. I won't tell you what the other guys did. [Laughs]

JD: I think people can probably guess. [Laughs] Interesting. And many of the people who were of the right age, or who went to camp, then volunteered for the military or were even drafted into the military. In the small group of people in Moses Lake, I assume there must have been some talk about whether they should take that path or whether they should...

JH: Yeah, that's right. They probably did because they were all that age, that eligible age. But I didn't capture any of that in my experiences with living close to these people, these young men. But I'm sure that happened. I think they were ready to go, too, but I don't know. The 442 was a great group of, great unit. I don't know, I think they were there after it was all over, 442. Probably disbanded by then.

JD: Yeah, that was an amazing bunch. Did you know any of the Bainbridge Island Japanese Americans who were fighting in Europe with the 442?

JH: Oh, sure. The two Koura brothers, Nob and Art, and Don Nakata's dad, or no, excuse me, Don Nakata's uncle. Yeah, they were wounded, I think all three of 'em were wounded.

JD: But I guess you were kind of protected from that news so you didn't really know anything about it 'til later.

JH: Well, I wasn't old enough at the time. The draft came after World War II. Well, there was always drafts but then...

JD: I just meant in terms of understanding the importance of the 442 and their place in history. Later on, when you were old enough, you began to learn more about that?

JH: Oh, yes.

JD: I assume that must have been very important in terms of the...

JH: Well, they even made a movie, Go for Broke, name of that movie.

JD: I've seen that, yeah. It's not bad.

JH: It was a little overdramatic, I guess, but it honored a great unit.

[Interruption]

<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 2007 Densho. All Rights Reserved.