Working in the camp hospital

Her early memories before the war Learning English Taking her father’s ashes, going back to Japan, learning the koto and culture Sensing the war was coming Coming back to America from Japan before the war Working at the family flower shop, meeting Greta Garbo Her experience of Japanese American Evacuation Memories of Manzanar Working in the camp hospital Wind in camp Her grandfather and Dr. Thompson Her grandmother comes to Manzanar Experiencing prejudice after the war

Transcripts available in the following languages:

I don’t even think we had flowers in camp. Maybe we did, I don’t know.

I was busy working at the lab at the hospital all the time, see. That was okay. I enjoyed doing that. In those days, we had nurse Akita. She was a wonderful nurse. But the doctors there weren’t very good. Anyway, nurse Akita was one of the head nurses at the Cedar Syanide when that was over here on Fountain Avenue. Nurse Akita. But she really helped me too, especially when you’re doing all that live under those microscopes.

We only received $16 a month. And if it’s a bit higher than that, it’s a couple dollars more. That was it.

Date: May 24, 2011
Location: California, US
Interviewer: John Esaki
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

california concentration camps hospital manzanar World War II