<Begin Segment 15>

RP: What was your gut feeling when you received the news that you would have to leave Bakersfield, as the government call it, evacuated? Be removed from your community and sent somewhere? Did you...

NM: Oh, I think it was very upsetting of course. But, I think it sort of came on gradually and we were sort of in a state of flux anyway. We didn't know what's going to happen. And so, little by little, things changed and it wasn't something that came all at once. We kind of expected something to happen. So, I guess we were upset of course but I don't think it was something we thought we had to do something about. It was that shigata ga nai feeling, you know.

RP: Do you know how much time you had to prepare to, to go to Poston?

NM: I think the evacuation order came in, what, February or something like that? And we had to leave, we left in middle of May. So, I guess the camps weren't ready in the first place, I guess, anyway. So they couldn't send us all out there until after we had a place to live. And so we kind of stayed until then.

RP: Now you received a lot of support from folks in the church community.

NM: Yes.

RP: Can you tell us a little bit about that?

NM: Yes. We, there was a person named Emma Buckmaster. And she had a friend, Miss... can't remember, recall her name. But anyway, Miss Buckmaster was a first grade teacher and so she had taught many of the younger generation. And she was a very staunch friend of the church, too. She was a Methodist church member, and so she helped the Japanese church a good deal. She taught, I think she taught Sunday school and helped in various ways, so. And so she and her friend and the minister at the time, Reverend Throckmorton and his family, they were right there helping us out and supporting us. So, we felt very strong about that. Of course, I had just been there only since the summer so I didn't have too many Caucasian friends yet. But, I think the long time residents there had friends and they, they were very helpful to them, yes. There was no incident of attack or anything like that.

RP: And some of the Caucasian church members took possession of some of your personal property?

NM: Yes, our property. We, in Bakersfield, all of the property was put into the church, stored in the church. And so after we were sent to the camps and we'd need different things that we had, they would go and get the things for the people who had these needs and send it to us in our camp. So, that was in our community and I'm sure things like that happened in other places, too.

RP: Did you have items that they sent to you in Poston?

NM: [Coughs] Excuse me, I don't think I had anything special. I don't think I had much of anything anyway at that time. Just married, not much of possessions or anything. So, but I know other people had many things sent to them.

Off Camera: Was your friend's name Lottie?

NM: Hm?

Off Camera: Was the friend's name Lottie or something?

NM: Lottie? Lottie Phillips, Phillips, yeah, was the other person. Lottie, Lottie Phillips.

Off Camera: Have you heard of her? Have you talked to other people about it?

NM: Yes, you probably have because they were very helpful for the Japanese.

RP: We've heard those two names before.

NM: Yes, I'm sure.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2010 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.