Densho Digital Archive - Kaz Yamamoto Interview (denshovh-ykaz-01-0008)

<Begin Segment 8>

RP: Was there, in Santa Monica, was there an area where the community, Japanese community, gathered regularly?

KY: Not, not that I know of.

RP: What about, was religion a significant part of your upbringing too? Was religion a significant part...

KY: Oh, religion?

RP: ...of your upbringing?

KY: Religion? Well... religion. I'm trying to think. You're talkin' about religion in the Japanese cultural way, huh? No, no. The only thing, the only thing that's even close to that would be the koto that my sister took. That's strictly Japanese, that she took.

RP: Did you attend church at all?

KY: Huh?

RP: Did you attend church?

KY: What?

RP: Did you attend church?

KY: Oh, church?

RP: Yes.

KY: No, I didn't go to church. There was, in Santa Monica there was a church that was mostly Japanese, Free Methodist Church. And when we first moved to Santa Monica we lived catty corner from this church that was taught by this Caucasian couple. And they apparently years before were missionaries in Japan or somethin' like that. And so they could speak Japanese very well. So they were teaching at this church. So they could speak both English and Japanese. And they were very popular there. And that's the only church that we went to when I was growing up. But I only went there just a few years because I didn't, I didn't live in that area for very long. Before that... I moved from there to another area. So I was quite a ways from that church. But even still, that same church exists now but it's in, I guess it's... is it Gardena? It's on, I guess it's, I guess it's close to Gardena now. But it moved. And it's called Free Methodist Church. And most of the people are Japanese that go to that church. But I didn't go, I didn't go to church that much at all. Only when I was young. Yeah. None in my family went to church regularly, on a regular basis. But when I moved to Chicago, I used to go this church that was, the minister was Japanese, Baptist church. I went there. Matter of fact, that minister is the one that married my wife and I.

RP: Your dad was a gardener. Did you, did you work with him at all?

KY: Yeah. I worked with him to help him out. But I didn't, I didn't enjoy it very much. But I went to help my father more than anything else. I didn't get paid or anything. And maybe that's the reason why I didn't, I didn't care for it because here I am working my ass off and not getting paid. [Laughs] So when I got a chance, my brother, he had a classmate whose father used to run this produce market, and he wanted some help, part-time help, and so my brother's friend asked my brother if I would be interested in working there. So naturally I said, "Sure, I'll work there." Get paid. So I, that's what I did. I worked in this produce market. On the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked I was working in the market. It was a Sunday. And so I was working in that market, but as a part-time worker. But I got paid.