<Begin Segment 25>

RP: Well, do you have any other stories about camp that you want to share with us or that we haven't touched on?

KY: Well, let me see... you know, I did, I told you that I was a junior cook. But the other time, for a brief, brief time, I worked in the relocation office. They called it the relocation office. And that was where all these jobs from the outside came into camp for people that wanted work outside of camp. And I moved into that relocation office to work as a, like a secretary. I got a hold of all these jobs that came in and I was like a file clerk. That's what I was doing as a file clerk. And my brother, who was an artist, commercial artist, he was working there and he was making these posters, posters about outside work. He'd make, he was very clever. He'd make a drawing of, of some work outside of camp to display to the people: "You can do this kind of work." And that's what he was doing. He was an artist in the relocation office. And I was filing all these jobs that came in. And it was a simple job but it was something that I could do. And I made the same amount of money as anybody else. You know, you could only make sixteen dollars a month. You know that, don't you? So what's the difference? If I do some menial job like that and still get sixteen dollars, you're not gonna make anymore. That's what I did.

RP: Do, do you remember who you worked under?

KY: No. It's just a... you know, all these jobs in camp were run kind of loosely if you know what I mean. And that was, there were some girls, like my sister for instance, she was trained as a secretary. She graduated from the secretary school in Santa Monica. And because she was Japanese she was going to the school and she graduated but all during that time, if the job comes in and if a student was well enough advanced in the trade, secretary, they'd get, find a job for them. But none came in for my sister because she was Japanese. There was prejudice there and so she went the whole route in that school, and so when she, when she graduated the work came and she was sent to camp. So she was well trained. She was perfect for gettin' the job as a secretary and she made a fine secretary in her trade, as a secretary. She was bright anyway, but she was even better. She was very smart.

RP: You mentioned that your brother designed these posters...

KY: Uh-huh, yeah.

RP: ...to encourage people to leave the camp and were those put up around the camp? Do you know where they were?

KY: No, No I don't think so.

RP: Were they at the relocation office?

KY: Yeah, no, yeah, it was near the relocation office. He had 'em outside, poster about these jobs. And that's all he did. I guess people walked around there and noticed. Anyway, some of the people probably came to the office, relocation office, to find work when they wanted to go out. If you're prepared of a job that's advertised, it's easy to go there and get a job right away, you know what I mean? Because jobs were not scarce. There was plenty of jobs if you wanted to work. And people like my brother can advertise these jobs. And so it made it easier for the people that wanted to go outside. Yeah.

RP: Well, thank you, Kaz. We're gonna finish our interview on that note.

KY: Okay.

RP: Thank you so much for lots of great stories and memories.

KY: Yeah.

RP: Thanks from Kirk and myself and the National Park Service. Great interview.

<End Segment 25> - Copyright &copy; 2011 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.