Wartime Memories

Category: Uncategorized

  • Fujiko Watanabe

    F08, Fujiko Watanabe ‘97, Kaneo Watanabe, Grandfather, 1919, Yamanashi My paternal grandfather, Kaneo Watanabe, is 76 years old. He lives near Lake Kawaguchi in Yamanashi prefecture. I talked to him about his wartime memories in December 1995. Q: What was your reaction to the beginning of World War II? A: I thought that finally the…

  • Jumi Hayaki

    D01, Jumi Hayaki ‘91, Kikuyo Tsuchiya, Grandmother, 1909,   Shizuoka The following is an interview, held over the telephone, between my maternal grandmother and myself during November 1989. Throughout, Mrs Kikuyo Tsuchiya (currently aged 80 years) relates her personal wartime experiences, ranging from those within her own household to those for the benefit of the nation.…

  • Judy Lam

    E11C, Judy Lam ‘94 , Lam Jin Sung, Grandmother, 1923, Gunma, Yokohama: Naka-ku, Nishi-ku I interviewed my grandmother on December 1, 1992. She is my father’s mother and is 69 years old. Q: How old were you during World War II?A: I was 16 when it started [in Europe] and 22 when it ended. I…

  • Ai Fujita

    G01, Ai Fujita ‘99, Sumako Ikeda, Grandmother, 1929, Tōkyō In November 1997, I interviewed my maternal grandmother, Sumako Ikeda, at my grandparents’ house in Umejima, Tōkyō. She was born in 1929 and is 68 years old now. Q: Please tell me your situation when World War II began. A: I was 12 years old when…

  • Aileen Jo

    D02C, Aileen Jo ‘91, “Anyan,” Grandmother, c 1924, Hyōgo, Nagano, China, Yokohama: Naka-ku In November 1989, I asked my grandmother (whom I call “Anyan”) about her wartime memories. She was a teenager and young adult during the worst years of the war.  Q: Anyan, I’d like to ask you some questions about your experiences during…

  • Mami Park

    E12K, Mami Park ‘94, Mrs Yamamoto, Neighbor, c 1925, Kanagawa: Kawasaki-shi, Chiba Around the time when Japan was about to enter the Second World War, the lives of the Japanese began changing. The government put into action programs to teach the people the types of actions they would have to know and use during a…

  • Fernando Hannaka

    G02Br, Fernando Hannaka ‘99, Masao Ijuka, Family friend, 1923,   Saitama I interviewed a friend of my mother, Mr Masao Ijuka, on November 8, 1997. He is 74 years old. I met him at his home in Konosu, Saitama prefecture. Q: What did you do during World War II?A: I was just like you, a boy…

  • Eika Ōtake

    D03, Eika Ōtake ‘91, Nirō Ōtake, Grandfather, 1931, Tōkyō In November 1989, I interviewed my paternal grandfather about World War II. He was born in 1931 and is now 58 years old. Q: How old were you when the war broke out? A: I was about ten years old then, I think. Q: Where did…

  • Durrah Salam

    E13M, Durrah Salam ‘94, Misako Barbu, Teacher, 1934,Yokohama: Naka-ku Mrs Barbu, my teacher, was only eleven years old at the end of the war and the beginning of the U.S. Occupation. In November 1992, I asked her about her experiences at that time.  She lived in Yokohama with her mother and her little baby sister.…

  • Akira Kodama

    G04, Akira Kodama ‘99, Keiji Mano, Family friend, 1930   I interviewed one of my mother’s friends, named Keiji Mano. He is 67 years old and took care of me when I was very young. While my mother had to work at night, she took me to his house to be looked after until my…