…e of the Gannen Mono in 1868.) Ryozo started work as a ditchman for Hawaii Commercial and Sugar Company (HC&S) and later became water luna. But he was diabetic and so was shifted to taking care of the Spreckesville ball park. Kaoru’s mother, Sugayo, also from Hiroshima, came to the Islands ten years later. Strong and healthy, she did all kinds of work on the plantation. After her marriage to Ryozo, she was also shifted to the ball park to work wit…

…troops at Schofield Barracks, then was shipped to Korea where he became a Company Commander in the 45th Infantry Division. But this was during the last two weeks of the war so his actions consisted mostly of patrol duty. After the end of that war, he continued with the Reserve program, retiring in 1965. Ken’s forte is athletics – basketball, baseball and softball. He’s been coaching youngsters in these fields all his adult life; has gained some p…

…nt rapport of respect and understanding among them because of their mutual experiences in combat. In the 60 years since the war, memories that were so long suppressed are now being revived because he and other veterans finally began talking about the war. Some veterans are realizing that stuffing their stories and memories of buddies who did not return could be therapeutic as it helped resolve the trauma that emotionally touched their lives. Hayas…

…next day, destined never to see each other again, for on the first day of combat, September 29, 1943, in Italy, Sgt. Joe Takata, the NCO on guard detail that night in Oran, wes[sic] killed in action, receiving postumously [sic] the Distinguished. Service Cross Medal for his courageous action. VOLTURNO RIVER CROSSING The retreating Germans had blown up the bridge over the Volturno River. The 100th sent a rifle squad across the river to scout for e…

…D Company Puka Puka Parades, May-June 1982, vol. 36 no. 3 Robert Taira and Company D recall various memories of WWII In the heat of combat one feels secure and safe under certain circumstances even though all hell is breaking loose around you. Such was the case when some members of Dog Company were resting, concealed in a haystack, in the vicinity of San Georgia after an exhausting 20 mile push in a span of 24 hours by the 100th Bn as part of the…

…Sasaoka was part of a convoy taking food, water and ammunition through the German lines to 100th comrades who had advanced far into the forest. When the convoy was attacked, he stayed on top of a tank and continued to fire his machine gun until he fell off, critically wounded. When friends went back to look for him, they couldn’t find him. He was later sighted at a German POW camp, but was killed by Russian forces when they invaded Germany. His re…

…ent leaders before and during World War II on behalf of the local Japanese community. As chairman of the Morale Committee established by the FBI chief in Hawaii, he traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Franklin Roosevelt and others about the problems affecting the Japanese Americans in Hawaii and in the armed forces. His efforts, along with the other community leaders he worked with, prevented the mass evacuations of the Japanese po…

…nity. To begin with, even the unit’s first touch with European soil was an experience in itself. While the parent 442nd Regimental Combat Team pulled into the Allied 5th Army port of Naples, the 522nd debarked on the other side of the Italian peninsula, at Brindisi on the Adriatic, the province of the British 8th Army. “I don’t know why it was so,” noted Barton Nagata, who was then a young man fresh out of Grinnell College with a major in history….

…n the 30th the General paid us a visit and congratulated us on our initial combat experience and predicted a continuation of the same. A month later, Army Ground Forces sent a letter to the Commanding Generals of the major units of the Army then in service, and from this letter I quote: “The combat record of an infantry battalion composed of Japanese-American personnel emphasizes the fact that these people have earned the respect, admiration, conf…

…ject a special note. When I first joined the unit, I was made aware of one company commander who seemed gruff and complaining much of the time. To get to know him better I marched beside him as we advanced into fighting positions. I quickly learned why he was upset; he wanted to fight in the Pacific theater because if we did not fight against the Japanese, after the war some would say that AJA’s fought against Caucasians but would not fight agains…