<Begin Segment 27>

RP: Then you grew up in a pretty vibrant community in Terminal Island which no longer existed after the war but then you and a number of other Islanders chose to remember that community by establishing an association and can you tell us, talk a little bit about getting people together to set up a community and a remembrance of Terminal Island?

TI: Yeah. Well, we had this Terminal Islanders, I guess you'd call it a club or a group and we'd meet once a year, or, no, I take it back. We'd meet twice a year, once in January for our January party and then second time would be in June. We have our Terminal Islanders picnic. And the turnout's real good. And I have about, I think I have between 450 and 500 names of people that had something to do with Terminal Island. And I'd mail them a membership request which is only ten dollars a year, you know. And well, most of 'em will send in their ten dollars but still we have some that are, just ignore us completely. But we have, we do have a turnout of about hundred and fifty during the New Year's party, and a much larger turnout for the picnic.

RP: What do you do during the picnic?

TI: Well, picnic, well, it's not much, not much we can do. We put up a stand and anybody that wanted to sing, why, they give them a chance to sing.

RP: And this organization's been going on for quite a while.

TI: Oh yes, uh-huh.

RP: Almost as long as you've been in the union.

TI: Not quite. I think, if I'm not mistaken, Yuki's been president for about thirty-five years. And we, we did have another president before him, so...

RP: And you're the vice president?

TI: Well, vice president in name only. But I collect money, the membership dues.

RP: And Terminal Island, you talk to people, do they know what you're talking about when you mention, "I grew up in Terminal Island"? Is there still people who really don't know where that is?

TI: Oh, we have some that don't care, yeah. And ones that do associate with us at picnic or New Year's party, why, they're strong Terminal Islanders. Of course, their children aren't Terminal Islanders anymore. They don't know what it was like in Terminal Island so they just stay away, which is a shame.

RP: And how would you, how do you remember Terminal Island?

TI: Terminal Island?

RP: You look back from the time that you spent there to now.

TI: Well, personally, I think Terminal Island was a real good place to live. And I kind of hope we had something like that even now. Yeah, it was real close and, you know, if you're a kid and say you're playing with your friend and if it's lunchtime or dinnertime, you were always invited to stay for, stay for meal. That's something that never happens nowadays.

RP: You're part of a family?

TI: Uh-huh.

RP: Other kids remember kind of a freedom that they had too to just wander about without parents worrying about where they were.

TI: Yeah, that's true, too.

RP: Is that something you experienced too?

TI: Yes.

RP: And what about the, what about your camp experience? How do you reflect on that? Do you see it differently now than you saw it when you were, when you were in the camp? Have your attitudes changed about the treatment that you received?

TI: Well, I don't know. I don't think I was treated badly in camp but it's just the idea that we were citizen and put into camp that's not, not very good. But aside from that, I have nothing against the camp. Maybe the government had to do it that way.

RP: One more question and that relates to after your father was picked up by the FBI You, he was held I think on the island for a while.

TI: He may have been. I think he may have been in the prison that they had there on the island. I'm not sure. But I know some people were there. He may have been sent to Los Angeles, some prison in Los Angeles. That I don't know either.

RP: Do you recall being hired to do some translation for some of those Isseis there?

TI: No, not at that time.

RP: Oh, okay.

TI: Not at that time.

RP: Was there any opportunity in Gila River to use your bilingual skills to help out a situation?

TI: In Gila? No, I can't think of any.

RP: Kirk, do you have any additional questions? Tosh, do you have any other stories that you don't feel we've gotten to that you want to...

TI: Oh, I don't know.

RP: Okay. Well, thank you very much.

TI: Well, don't thank me. I didn't have too much clear information to give you but --

RP: Well, we thank you.

TI: -- but that's the best of my ability.

<End Segment 27> - Copyright © 2010 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.