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EK: And, I guess, Bill, if you'd like to finish off our introductions.

BT: Yeah, I think I mentioned that I was past chapter president for Seattle JACL, twice, but talking about Elaine is... just to go back, when Karen was talking about Elaine, I just smiled, because she had Elaine down perfectly. And one thing that I remember is that I have been what I consider a lifelong friend of Elaine, one of those folks who she kept in touch with. I first met Elaine in the mid-'60s at a junior JACL workshop in Cleveland. A friend and I were assigned to pick up Elaine Akagi at the bus terminal. I had no idea who Elaine Akagi was. We didn't know how we were going to recognize her. But this was the mid-'60s in Cleveland, Ohio. And as the passengers exited the bus, they were white and they were Black. And then, all of a sudden, we see a smiling Asian face come off the bus. And she says, "Hi, I'm Elaine. Thanks for picking me up." [Laughs] And I think from then on, we just became friends and we've kept in touch ever since the mid-'60s. Even when she was in Detroit, I would have friends in Detroit, I would see her, made it to her wedding. And that -- she would visit her mother and aunt in Seattle and we'd always hook up. And after she moved to Seattle, we kept in touch. We were really involved with JACL at the time later. And it seems like with Ann and Elaine and other folks, we would see each other sometimes two or three times a week. And so, yeah, my friendship with Elaine goes -- and my admiration for Elaine goes way back.

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