…us sick. It was a cork forest in Oran that we found out that we were to become a part of the 34th Div. We also found out that cork came from the bark of trees. We were to serve with the 34 Div. for one year. Most of our conversation during the last 3 days centered around our combat experience with the 34th Div., starting from Salerno through Benevento, up through Naples, the Volturno River Crossings, Cassino, Anzio, Rome, Belvedere, the Arno Rive…

…Ann, was born at about this time. He had tasted hard times on Kauai and in combat, had seen enough of the indifferences of man and how this makes him come to accept as a matter of course the injustices of one against the other. He decided to shift his chances to Glasgow, Montana, his wife’s hometown. Glasgow, population under 5,000, is an agricultural town up in the northeast corner of Montana, 60 miles from the Canadian border of Saskatchewan. It…

…he regiment. The 100th Battalion was subsequently merged with the 442nd, becoming the combat team’s 1st Battalion, although it was allowed to retain its name. Chaplain Yost, who by then had developed a bond with the men, realized that he might be transferred out of the 100th, so he requested, and was granted, special permission to remain with the 100th. When the war ended, Yost returned to his family in Pennsylvania and put the war behind him, see…

…s. His father, John Alexander Johnson, was an agronomist for C. Brewer and Company, one of Hawaii’s largest sugar companies. Jack grew up among the Islands’ elite, attending prestigious Punahou School. But instead of going to the Mainland for college like most of his classmates, Jack entered the University of Hawaii (UH), where he joined the school’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program. A good student, he would eventually be named stud…

…Bn. made any friends in Hattiesburg. Capt. Jack Mizuha was the proud first commander of F Company and would, have liked to have gone into combat with F Co. The 100th Bn. Commander, LTC Turner, transferred him to Dog Company. Capt. Mizuha let it be known to Dog Co. members that he was not pleased with LTC Turner’s decision. There was one point Capt. Mizuha constantly emphasized and that was, as Nisei soldiers, we have to go into combat and make the…

…lty.” Sparky took that advice. Thus Second Lieutenant Matsunaga was acting company commander on Molokai on Sunday, December 7, when the Japanese struck Pearl Harbor. As dark smoke billowed up 60 miles away, Sparky handed out rifles and posted the company’s 117 soldiers to guard beaches and the airfield. Over the next several months, the US government debated what to do with Japanese-Americans soldiers and finally, in May 1942, formed them into an…

…. Japan, like Germany, had been notified that its athletes would not be welcome at the 1948 Olympic Games. If Japan ever wanted to compete again, the JOC would have to travel to Rome and formally petition the International Olympic Committee to be readmitted. However, with postwar Japan in ruins, there was no money to help the nation’s athletes. People in Hawaii were less than enthusiastic about helping Japan. Memories of the country’s attack on Pe…

…’ cemetary [sic] on Kauai. As I grew older, I would naturally ask Mom more questions about Dad. Questions like “what did he enjoy doing, what did he like to eat, and what were his hobbies?” were asked frequently. At one point, I even asked about any arguments or unpleasant memories about Dad. She simply replied, “our time together was just too short for us to argue and to disagree. Therefore, I only have pleasant thoughts about your dad.” Mom trul…

…the Purple Heart; therefore, Shigeru deemed that the coveted award must become his. During an Italian Campaign, Shigeru unwittingly exposed his most vulnerable area of his anatomy while being in the prone position; hence, an enemy bullet neatly penetrated his backside cheek. To this day, Shigeru has not revealed how he knew the trajectory of the bullet will only skim the epidermis and outer body tissues to cause lacerated injury. Learned that Rin…

…us, taking their regular turn.” The outfit’s first action was fought by a company commanded by Captain Taro Suzuki, of Honolulu, veteran of 16 years in the army, 13 of which were served in the Reserve. “It was our own fight,” Captain Suzuki said. “The company had to sink or swim by itself. We had walked by blown out bridges that stopped heavy artillery from being brought up behind us and then worked our way down a winding road. The bends cut us o…