<Begin Segment 3>

BH: So let's talk about you and your childhood now. You were living in Brooks. Tell us what your home looked like.

SF: The standard home. We added on an upstairs. There were seven of us in the family, and I was the youngest.

BH: So at that time, your mom and your dad, older brothers and sisters, and you. And then two more, a brother and a sister born during the war. So tell me the names of your brothers and sisters in order of their birth.

SF: Okay. The oldest one is Masao, and we called him Mutt. And after Mutt was Pauline. Her Japanese name was Haruye, but they couldn't pronounce it in high school, so she legally changed it to Pauline. And then next is Miki, and after Miki was Toshi, and after Toshi was me, Jinx.

BH: And what was Miki's Japanese name?

SF: His Japanese name is Mikio. Mikio, and that's where he got the Miki.

BH: So how did Pauline come up with Pauline from Haruye?

SF: I don't know. [Laughs] Because she was in (grade) school when (her friend gave it to her), I guess she liked the name Pauline.

BH: And then you have a brother and a sister who were born in camp?

SF: Yes, after thirteen years, my brother Ed, Ed Shigeo Tamiyasu was born in Tule Lake. And then a year later, my sister, Lynn, Lynn Keiko Tamiyasu was born in Minidoka.

BH: Now, you mentioned that your parents were farming. They didn't own the land, they couldn't own the land, so were they leasing, or was it in somebody else's name?

SF: The land was... well, everyone in our community, Lake Labish area in Brooks, were leasing the ground from this Ronald Jones. And I don't know whose name it was all under.

BH: About how many acres did your dad farm?

SF: I thought it was roughly about 70 acres.

BH: And what kinds of things did he grow?

SF: Okay, we had mainly celery and onion. But I was pretty young at that time. My brother and sisters would go to work before they went to school, and then they would change clothes and go to school. But summertime, everybody would be out in the farm working, and I would be home alone. So I would wake up, get dressed, and go out to the field in time for their snack, morning snack. [Laughs]

BH: Seventy acres, that's a lot for your mom and dad and older brothers and sisters. Did anybody else help with farming?

SF: Well, no. We had, yes, we had some Filipinos helping out, working for us.

BH: And did they live on the farm or near the farm?

SF: Yes, they had a little place, they lived close to our place.

BH: So what was life like for them?

SF: Well, basically work. I think it was harder for them because they didn't have their friends around. And then we lived in a community, and we would get together. There were about nine to ten families in our community.

BH: Japanese families?

SF: Uh-huh, all Japanese.

BH: Did these Filipino workers speak English?

SF: Yes, they did. Their, I thought their lifestyle was a little different, but other than that, I didn't associate too much with them.

BH: When you were growing up, what were typical meals at your house?

SF: Well, naturally rice. [Laughs] Your typical okazu, the stir fry. And your, I don't know, typical Japanese food.

BH: So where did your mom purchase Japanese foods?

SF: There was a store... well, sometimes we would come to Portland. But, oh, there was a... I can't think of his name right now, he used to come around to sell fish, and he had some Japanese items also, and he would go door to door.

<End Segment 3> - Copyright © 2014 Oregon Nikkei Endowment and Densho. All Rights Reserved.