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MA: And so it sounds like Medford was a small town. Were there, was there like a Japanese church there or some sort of Japanese community place?

MY: There was a community, I don't know how many, but one restaurant owner and one family that ran a coffee shop in the hotel. And I can't remember what else. I think most of 'em were living around the city doing farming and that kind of thing. We had, there was a nucleus, a small group of Japanese that got together, especially at this one restaurant that everybody seemed to gather, I guess. We never got there, but...

MA: And you said that you went to live with your foster family in Medford about fifth or sixth grade?

MY: I think so.

MA: And so what about the school that you started to attend in Medford? Can you tell me a little bit about that and your experience at that school?

MY: In Medford? My sister and I went to this City School. Bus picked us up, so it was just a normal, small town school. And I went through there and graduated from Medford High School.

MA: When you were going to school, were there many Niseis that were also students with you? Was there a big Nisei population?

MY: No, no. In fact, I think probably, I was probably the only one in my grade, and my sister, too, in her grade. There weren't really that many Japanese families.

MA: And then who were your friends? Were they, then, mostly the Caucasian students?

MY: Caucasians, right. Yeah, I still keep in touch with a few of my high school friends that haven't passed on, you know.

MA: And what were some activities or hobbies that you were involved in in high school?

MY: I didn't really get involved in anything because we were bussed home right after school. I don't know if they had after-school activities or not. But we just caught the bus after school and went home.

<End Segment 3> - Copyright ©2009 Densho and the Twin Cities JACL. All Rights Reserved.