<Begin Segment 21>

RP: What was your reaction to the redress in the 1980s?

MN: That, well, we were happy at least there was something we're getting. A lot of us, not myself as much as my mother, lost a lot. I mean, a lot of people just absolutely nothing. They said that they couldn't even, like Fred said, he said he, they gave away things, furniture and things, he says, and at that time we didn't have a lot of furniture either, but he says that some people just lost everything. And he says, but he says, "At least it helped some." And I said, "You bet it did." Like he bought, what did he buy? He bought a car with it. I said, "Well, I'm holding it." I said -- I'm still holding it -- "Until I get my kitchen done," I says. But I'm not gonna... my sister, Hisako, because Lanterman has been so good to her and taken care of her all the years, my mother used to send money, but we sent it over there for them.

RP: The whole check?

MN: The whole check, right, to Lanterman for taking care. Because we felt they were taking care, good care of her. And she was happy there. That's, there's so many of them, brain damaged -- these are from wealthy families -- they don't even see them. But no, they've taken care of her. So I thought, well, some people thought, "Well, how come you people get..." I says, "You know, if you realized how many people have lost everything, that isn't very much." But it would help, it helps a lot. Think of all those thousands and thousands of people that got... that's all, it adds up to a lot.

RP: Final, final question, if you can maybe share, your mom, your mother raised all you kids, created a business, spoke out, stood down the Terminal Islanders.

MN: [Laughs] Yeah.

RP: Share what you can, what you feel about her, what she made of herself.

MN: She was a strong person. She didn't say too much, but when she did... and she learned how to speak English fluently, and then when they finally said she can go and take the test, study and do it, she said, "Now?" she says, "I don't need that." [Laughs] She wasn't gonna be bothered with it. She said, "I'm just too busy working." She worked and worked and worked. She worked until she was, oh gosh, she held onto the shop until she was eighty-eight, eighty-nine. We gave a big party for her. Eighty-eight is supposed to be a fancy, a special year for the Japanese, but we noticed that she was getting, she couldn't remember things, and I was doing all the business part for her, the checks and things. And, but I noticed that there's some things that she paid cash for, and I says, "Grandma, don't do that. I'll give 'em a check. Just tell 'em to give you the bill." They knew this, she couldn't remember, so they were double, and so then we decided, well, it's time for her to switch over. And being that Sumi was here with her husband and they were doing the work, design work and everything, I only came in when they were really busy busy. So she decided, but it was hard for her to give up the shop. It was. I mean, the name, getting the name off and everything, 'cause you have to change the license and everything. But she was, she made, she made, she gave us a very comfortable living. We weren't living fancy, we didn't have new cars or anything like that, but we're a happy family, healthy. Yeah. But she made sure she did things for people, when she was able to. She gave us all, each daughter, a birthstone. Etsuko has the sapphire, and she had a garnet, and I have an opal. And it's not a little opal either, it's a very... but this is how she was able to, we didn't do a lot of fancy celebrating either, birthdays and things and exchanging, but this was her way of telling us thank you. She was a strong woman. I mean, but oh boy, if she didn't like you, just forget it. Just pass by, just don't say anything. [Laughs] That's how she was. If she likes you, oh my gosh, she would just take the shirt off of her back. This is how she, her only grandson, she just, she just doted over him.

RP: Just for the record, I don't think we mentioned the name of the florist shop. What was the name?

MN: The name of the shop? Tokio Florist. T-O-K-I-O.

RP: Did she come up with that name?

MN: You know, could be. It's been, 'cause there was no other shop by that name. There's Toyo, there's Griffith Park Flower Shop, no, she, and that's what she had up there in Los Feliz for years. Right across from the, well, right across from, it's between Hillhurst and Vermont, almost across from the original Brown Derby that used to be Willard's Chicken House.

RP: Is there anything else you'd like to add, a story that we haven't mentioned or that you think's important?

MN: Add? Let's see, well, I think, not really. We've had, experience-wise now, I mean, it was a good experience for us, really. And we've learned a lot. Hardship or no, I mean, you deal with, "Well, there's other people that are worse off than we are, really." Like my mom said, you work hard and, she says, you'll never starve. And that's true. We don't live fancy, just this is us. [Laughs]

RP: Okay, well Miyo, thank you very much for a great interview.

MN: No, thank you. Thank you very much.

RP: From Kirk and myself and the National Park Service.

<End Segment 21> - Copyright &copy; 2011 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.