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Trip to Japan as a Boy Scout

As a Boy Scout, we went to Japan, our troop went to Japan. We got this special deal with the government to let us on a military ship, for us to travel with the soldiers. We were like movie stars, people were waiting for us, and they wanted to see us, you know, I guess they'd never seen a Japanese American Boy Scout, it's the first time, it was a big deal. Went to the hotel, big party, you know, Lion's Club of Japan or whatever, they were there, big party, and then we would travel to different cities, and we would go on a train. And when we got to our destination, my god, we got out of the train, there were people waiting for us. And all these girls would come out and they got flowers, all lined up, said, "Wow," we didn't know what's going on. Yeah, that was fantastic.

So soon after all this we went to Osaka, which was our sister city. Then they had a big deal there, too, wow, big field and people all around there, and a big show, taiko and everything, fire burning and everything, and that's where we came out, drum and bugle corps, marched in. At least we did that for them, right, they were showing us all their things, and we had nothing. So the drum and bugle corps was great.


Boy Scouts Japan travel

Date: September 20, 2019

Location: California, US

Interviewer: Tom Ikeda and Yoko Nishimura

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum and Denshō: The Japanese American Legacy Project.

Interviewee Bio

George Kazuharu Naganuma was born in Lima, Peru to his Issei parents in 1938. His family were forced to board a ship, to be incarcerated at Crystal City, Texas, during World War II. They remained there even after the war had ended, without a place to go. They were able to leave via a sponsorship by a reverend in San Francisco, California, where they were able to find jobs and housing. George joined the Boy Scouts in San Francisco and was able to visit Japan with his troop. He joined the U.S. Army and worked as a clerical typist. (June 2020)

Ota,Vince

Japan as my home

Japanese American Creative designer living in Japan

Sogi,Francis Y.

Traveling the world seven times

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Visiting family in Japan

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Being stationed in Japan during the American occupation

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Rebuilding Japan

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Investigating labor movements in Japan

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Sogi,Francis Y.

Feeling closer to Japan as a Japanese American

(1923-2011) Lawyer, MIS veteran, founder of Francis and Sarah Sogi Foundation

Janzen,Terry

Growing Up in Japan

(b. 1930) Half Japanese and grew up in both Japan and the United States.

Oda,Harunori

Deciding to come to America

(1927-2016) Shin-Issei businessman

Oda,Harunori

Voyage to San Pedro

(1927-2016) Shin-Issei businessman

Fujioka,Robert T.

Grandfather's interrogations during World War II

(b. 1952) Former banking executive, born in Hawaii

Kaihara,Miko

Learning Japanese to speak to relatives in Japan

(b. 1924) Hairdresser. Incarcerated at Poston, Arizona.

Yamashiro,Michelle

Working together in Okinawa using three languages

Okinawan American whose parents are from Peru.

Kakita,Howard

His family Traveled to Japan in 1940

(b. 1938) Japanese American. Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor

Kakita,Howard

Reuniting with parents in America

(b. 1938) Japanese American. Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor