Wakumi’s World by Alexis Rae Wakumi Seyforth

The GVJCCA helped sponsor the third annual Obon Service and Odori at Nikkei Place on August 6th. Reverend Aoki from the Vancouver Buddhist Church and Bishop Fujikawa provided the service for the many people who attended. The service was for all who were unable to attend other Obon services, so we were very happy with the turnout.

Coming up soon on September 19 – 21, the NAJC and the GVJCCA will be hosting the 20th Anniversary of Japanese Canadian Redress Celebration and Conference which will be held at Nikkei Place and the Vancouver Japanese Language School & Japanese Hall. This will be a wonderful opportunity tor many of you who remember the years before, during and after our Redress achievement in 1988 to attend workshops or to rekindle memories and relationships from that time in your lives. Please come and register either online at www.redressanniversary.najc.ca/redress or fill out forms which are available at most Nikkei organization offices.

On October 4th, at noon there will be an official opening of Murakami Gardens on Salt Spring Island. This land was graciously donated by the Murakami family in order to build 27 low-cost housing units for individuals and families at risk of homelessness, and other social challenges. The Murakami’s are the only Japanese Canadians who returned to Salt Spring Island after being incarcerated during World War II. Rose and Richard Murakami view this generous gift as a way of giving back to the people of Salt Spring Island community.

During October 24 – 26, the National Association of Japanese Canadians (NAJC), will be holding its annual AGM in Winnipeg.  This will be an important AGM as the membership will be electing its new Board of Directors.  Also, as the NAJC funds eligible individual and group applicants for Sports, Education, and Arts Development (SEAD) and Cultural Development (CD) Programs, please have all your requests in to NAJC member organizations as soon as possible as the deadline is the end of September. To find out whether you are eligible for any of these funding please either notify your respective member offices or contact the NAJC at:
National Association of Japanese Canadians
404B Webb Place
Winnipeg, MB R3B 3J4
Phone: (204)943-2910
Fax: (204)947-3145
Email: National@najc.ca
Application forms are available at the NAJC new website of: www.najc.ca.

On November 1, the GVJCCA will be holding a fundraising dance at Nikkei Place. This will be an opportunity to bring friends and dress up. Costumes will not be mandatory but since it will be Halloween weekend, why not join in the fun and disguise yourself. Tickets will be available soon through the GVJCCA office at 604.777.5222 or email gvjcca@shaw.ca .

The GVJCCA Volunteer Party will be a little late this year on November 22, at Nikkei Place from 6 – 8 pm. This is a special event for the GVJCCA to thank all its volunteers donors, and advertisers for the year. We hope you can attend and enjoy seeing your many friends again before succumbing to the anxieties of the Christmas season.

Anyway, have a great back to school month and see you at the Redress Celebration and Conference. Also I would like to extend a special thanks to Akiko Adachi who has graciously translating my articles for the past few years.

Thank you

Ron Nishimura
President Greater Vancouver Japanese Canadian
Citizens’ Association

The right to buy Lotto tickets (scratch and win BINGO tickets, finally!), the right to enter into a binding contract (for example, getting your very own cell phone), the right to purchase and consume alcohol (…hmm…), the right to purchase and consume tobacco (although the 2006-2007 Youth Smoking Survey revealed that 11% of Canadian youth in grades 10 to 12 already reported being smokers) . . .

Probably biggest and best of all, however, is every 19-year-old’s newly acquired right (drum roll, please) to acquire (another drum roll, please) their very own (and yet another drum roll, please) credit card.

That’s right, their very own VISA, Mastercard or American Express. Oh, and what wonders. What freedom. What flexibility. What FANTASTIC plastic. Suddenly shopping sprees are a cinch, online purchases become parent-free. Heck, you can even go to the local cornerstore and pay for a single slurpee on credit.

And the offers. Oh, the offers! Travel points, low interest, student specific, cash back, eco-friendly, fraud protection, store discounts. A credit card for every consumer, no matter what their wishes or needs.

And what about bad credit? Or no credit? Not to worry, because instant approval credit cards abound! For all first-time credit card users, Canada’s fourteen card-issuing financial institutions don’t have any previous credit histories to examine, but nevertheless eagerly issue sophisticated credit card packages with substantial limits.

One 19-year-old friend from Vancouver applied for a credit card on the day of her nineteenth birthday. Two weeks later it had already arrived in the mail. No questions asked.

In all seriousness: the alarming proliferation of credit cards across our nation, particularly amongst young adults, has increasingly pointed to our society’s consumer obsessions. CBC Marketplace reports that the number of VISAs and Mastercards in circulation in Canada in 2003 totaled 50.4 million, nearly half of which carried a balance. CBC news reports also indicate that Canadian credit card debt between 1997 and 2001 increased by 90%.

The very first credit card, the Diners Club, was released in the United States in 1950, with American Express following suite eight years later. Needless to say, this industry has undergone quite the evolution in the past five decades. Credit card delinquency has become a growing problem, as well as credit card fraud.

At the end of August 2008, a salesperson from a lower mainland IKEA store informed me that 36 credit cards had been confiscated for fraudulent use in the period of a single week. Today, even an individual’s own best efforts to protect their personal credit activity can be easily compromised by those with simple access to a sixteen digit number, expiry date and name.

That said, as a 19-year-old myself, and a recent inductee into the exclusive club of adulthood, I must admit to being in no way opposed to the responsible use of credit cards. I, too, recently obtained my first rectangle of fantastic plastic and, despite the initial trembling swipe, have come to greatly appreciate the freedom and flexibility that credit cards do offer us. The key words, I guess, are responsible use. Turning nineteen is quite a big deal after all.

I would like to share my favourite zucchini bread with you. One year my husband planted three zucchini plants and I had zucchini coming out of my ears. I baked 75 loaves that year and of course they were for family, friends, neighbours and bake sales and meetings. It is so moist and delicious! Being a chocoholic, I love it.

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI LOAF CAKE
3 medium eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup salad oil
2 (1 oz.) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups grated zucchini (unpeeled)
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsps. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup coarsely chopped almonds

Beat eggs until lemon coloured. Beat in sugar and oil.
Stir melted chocolate into egg mixture along with vanilla and zucchini.
Sift the flour together with salt, cinnamon, baking powder and soda.
Stir into zucchini mixture with almonds; mix well.
Pour into two (9×5 inch) greased loaf pan.
Bake in moderate oven,350 deg. F about 50 to 60 minutes until bread tests done.
Cool in pans 15 minutes. Turn out on cake racks to finish cooling.
NOTE: These breads freeze well. Serve at room temperature with whipped cream cheese
flavoured with grated orange rind.
3 Tablespoons cocoa plus 2 Tbsp.oil = 1 oz. unsweetened choc.

AUTUMN PLUM TORTE
1/4 cup margarine
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 cup flour 1
1 Tbsp. flour
dash of nutmeg
dash of cinnamon
1/2 cup Half and Half
10-12 Italian plums
1 cup sugar

Cream margarine with 1 tbsp. sugar.
Add salt and 1 egg yolk, mix well. Reserve egg white.
Add 1 cup flour; mix well.
Spread over bottom of 9 ” pie pan (sprayed with Pam)
Cut plums in half, place cut side up over crust.
Combine 1 cup sugar, 1 tbsp. flour, and spices.
Sprinkle over plums.
Beat 1 egg + egg white; add Half and Half.
Pour over plum mixture. Bake at 425 F for 10 minutes, then 350 F for 40-45 mins. until plums are brown and custard set.

BLUBERRY CREAM PIE
1 pkg. vanilla pudding
1 1/2 cups milk ,1/2 cup whipped cream

Make pudding as directed on box except use 1/1/2 milk.
Refrigerate until cold.
Fold in whipped cream; turn into baked pie shell.

2 cups blueberries fresh or frozen
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. lemon rind
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 pie shell (9 inch) baked

In sauce pan, place scant 1 cup blueberries.
Add combined cornstarch, sugar, lemon rind and lemon juice.
Cook over low heat mashing and stirring until mixture thickens and clears.
Add remaining blueberries. Cool slightly.
Carefully spoon over pudding. Chill and serve.

In the months following the settlement, my mother talked about using some of the money to finally visit Japan—a place she had never seen, except in books. Sadly, circumstances never allowed her to fulfill that particular dream. When I saw her this past spring I asked her about it. She just shrugged, smiled wistfully and said, well, it never worked out.

Shikata ga nai. It can’t be helped. The words were unspoken, but they lingered in the air just the same.

I don’t know what my parents did with the bulk of the Redress money. I never asked. I do know that Redress meant a lot to my mother and a lot of other nisei—both the acknowledgment and the financial compensation that gave weight to the grand words—although it is not something that they talk about much.

During the Redress negotiations, proponents of individual compensation argued that while the wartime internment was imposed on the community as a whole, it impacted families and individuals in various and profound ways and that a community fund, as was proposed by some, would fail to honour that reality.
Conversely, opponents of individual compensation argued that the community risked looking greedy and self-serving, and warned of a backlash against Japanese Canadians on the part of the general population.

Twenty years later, we can look back at both the Redress struggle and its aftermath with the benefit of hindsight and say that for the most part those fears were unfounded. When the details of the agreement were made public, including the $21,000 individual compensation payment and the $12million community fund, the sky failed to fall, and it was in fact met more or less with equanimity on the part of the public.

Given that the worst failed to materialize, what were the benefits of the Redress victory for the Japanese Canadian community? I think that in order to fully answer the question, one must look at the state of the community today and compare it with the years following World War Two.

Insight into those postwar years can be found in back issues of this paper. The Bulletin was formed to help facilitate communication among the various individuals and groups that made up the nascent community. As a community-driven publication, the magazine reflected, to a large degree, the thoughts and concerns of its membership.
I
n researching the history of The Bulletin during this 50th Anniversary year, it is fascinating to see, in British Columbia at least, the evolving nature of the community’s view of itself and its relationship with Canadian society at large following the lifting of wartime restrictions. The impression one receives from the various articles and editorials in those early issues is of a community cautiously righting itself—clinging proudly to its newly-regained (and bolstered) citizenship while fearful of having it all taken away again, as if it all might be a mirage.

Above all, what comes across in the editorial pages is a fierce patriotism, an allegiance to Canada that is all the more remarkable in the face of the country’s betrayal of its own citizens in the years following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Shrugging off the festering racism that was the root cause of the internment in the first place, this was a community that was determined to put its best foot forward, to prove its worth—again.

Over the next 40 or so years, the pages of The Bulletin would chronicle the gradual rebuilding of the community, both materially and emotionally. As the memories of the war years receded, one senses a greater sense of ease, aided in part by growing acceptance within mainstream society. Still, one gets the sense, reading between the lines, that insecurity lay not far below the surface.

The seeds of the Redress movement were planted in the Japanese Canadian Centennial year, a time when community pride began to resurface. These seeds were nurtured in part by the sansei—the third generation—who were coming of age even as the memories of the internment years began to fade. Through involvement in Tonari Gumi and various historical projects, the sansei began to engage with the community.
If the Centennial was the catalyst for the community to rouse itself from its slumber, the Redress movement was a kick in the pants, igniting heated arguments among community leaders (and community members) not seen since the internment. At times it seemed that the Redress movement would sink beneath the weight of the controversy it generated, but Japanese Canadian are nothing if not stubborn and, well, we know how things turned out.

As we come up to the 20th Anniversary of the Redress settlement, I myself would measure its benefits not in financial terms, but in Japanese Canadians’ renewed faith in the country they have worked so hard to be a part of. Sometimes, it can be helped . . .

Takashi Yamada and Natsuko Fukushima are long-time members of the Vancouver Kendo Club. Both were recently chosen to join the Canadian National Team and will compete in the 14th World Kendo Championships to be held a year from now in Sao Paulo, Brazil, August 26-31, 2009.

Takashi Yamada was born in Japan but immigrated to Canada with his family when he was five years old. At the urging of his mother, who did kendo in Japan, he and his two younger sisters took up the sport. Currently, Takeshi, his mother, and his youngest sister practice on a regular basis. He serves as President of the Vancouver Kendo Club.

Natsuko Fukushima was born in Vancouver and took up kendo when she was seven, joining the Vancouver Kendo Club. “My mother took me to practice one day to watch. There were lots of children around my age practicing so I became interested.”

You both began practicing kendo when you were young. Did you take to it right away or did it take a while?
TAKASHI: I started practicing when I was six. It took a while for me to get into it, partly because I was interested in many other sports as well, but having good friends and teachers in the club kept me in it.
NATSUKO: Besides kendo, I started attending Japanese school and taking piano, violin, skating, swimming and other lessons around the same time. Most of the lessons didn’t interest me for long. Kendo was the only thing I really got into seriously. Kendo taught me not only the martial art but also the way to live, the discipline of yourself, friendship and lots of other things. Kendo has taught me so many things. By continuing kendo for so long, it let me gain so many life experiences. It is a big part of my life.

Tak, you mentioned that your mother is a kendoka. Was it expected that you follow in her footsteps? Is Kendo popular among women or is it mostly men?
TAKASHI: She started kendo when she got into elementary school because her older brother was practicing it at that time. She then kept it up until the end of senior high school (grade 12). She decided to put us into kendo because she wanted us to grow up with a sense of Japanese culture and she thought that kendo will not only teach us about Japanese culture but at the same time strengthen both the mind and the soul. Although not as popular as among men, kendo is fairly popular among women. Especially in our club, we have a large number of women, sometimes outnumbering the men. In our dojo alone we have over four members that are candidates for the Canadian national women’s kendo team.

Almost all of the other martial arts stress hand to hand combat, with the occasional use of a weapon, and kendo is the only martial art that uses armour or protection along with a sword. Does this help in its popularity or hinder it?
TAKASHI: At first, people find the armour attractive but as with all martial arts, it takes a long time to master the basics. Hence, the long process is where some lose their interest. Many people come into it thinking that they will be able to jump into combat right away but in reality, it may take months if not years until any sparring happens.

Tell me about the equipment.
NATSUKO: Kendo uses a long bamboo sword called the shinai. We wear dougi and hakama made of cotton. On top of that we wear full armour. It is very heavy and takes time to get used to. But it is modernized and I think it is lighter than in the samurai days. Kendo is a martial art that uses a sword to attack the opponent, so it is very different from the popular judo or karate. But I think it makes it look very unique.

In Wikipedia is says, “Kendo is one of the modern Japanese budo and embodies the essence of Japanese fighting arts.” Do you think this is true, if so, why?
TAKASHI: I agree with the statement that it “embodies the essence of Japanese fighting arts” but I disagree with it being modern. It has a deep history stemming back hundreds and hundreds of years. If I were to go into Wikipedia to change this I would change the word “modern” to “traditional.”

Superficially, there are some resemblances to fencing, but kendo is very different. Explain what kendo is.
TAKASHI: Kendo is considered a martial art rather than a sport in that greater emphasis is placed on strengthening the mind and soul instead of focusing on physical excellence. Furthermore, in kendo, to get a valid point, you need the right intensity, the right posture, and the correct strike. It is extremely vocal and physical as well. It is enjoyed by people of all ages (starting at around six years old all the way to 80s and 90s). It is one of those activities where youth is not necessarily an advantage. I have seen many people in their 20s or 30s being tossed around by someone in their 80s or 90s. Hence, people may describe kendo as a form of `Japanese fencing` but I believe there are more differences than there are similarities.
NATSUKO: Fencing is sword fighting in which you are in a straight line and you are targeting mainly the chest areas. Kendo is targeting the head (called men), wrist (kote), side body (dou) and throat (tsuki). In a match, we fight in a court.

How much attention is paid to the philosophical/spiritual aspects of kendo? Do you personally see it more as a sport or as a spiritual path?
TAKASHI: Great emphasis is laid on the philosophical and spiritual aspects of life in kendo. I definitely see it as more of a spiritual path. In kendo great emphasis is placed on discipline, respect and honour. The focus is not on winning but always respecting those that you fight with, even when you turn out victorious. Kendo strengthens the mind and soul, and without it, no matter how great one’s kendo ability, that person is not highly looked upon. One example is, if you get a point in a kendo match and you celebrate it (ie. what hockey players or soccer players do after scoring a goal), you get that point taken away. This is because celebrating is seen as “not respecting” fellow kendoka (kendo players). There is constant talk that kendo should become an Olympic event. However, many fear that if this happens it will take a way from the martial art aspect of kendo and simply transform it into a sport rather than a way of life.
NATSUKO: Kendo trains my mind, spirit and body. It lets me discipline and focus on myself. I think it is more than just exercise. When we go through tough practices I feel stronger as a person physically and mentally and I can feel confident outside of kendo as well.

You have both been selected to join the Canadian team. What does this entail for you?
TAKASHI: I think it is a great honour to be selected onto the team and with it comes great responsibility. I plan on training hard for my team mates, my country and most importantly for those that supported me in getting here. As a dojo leader, hopefully I can take this experience to view kendo at a global level and start interacting with many other kendoka from across the globe.
NATSUKO: I have been selected to join the Canadian team for the third time. I participated in 2003 in Glasgow Scotland and in 2006 in Taipei, Taiwan. Our ladies team got third place both times. We have done very well in the past as well. This means a lot to me. Since we have a strong reputation, I feel that we need to pass this to the generation to come and educate the younger ones so that we always have good results.

Will you actually practice with the team under a specific coach, or do you practice with your own dojos and then join the team for the tournament?
TAKASHI: There is a men’s coach and a women’s coach. The men’s coach is in Toronto so we do communicate occasionally through e-mail and the phone but it is pretty much in our hands to keep in shape and manage our condition. We have the support of various senseis (senior instructors) that guide us and advise us along the way. Before the world championships in August 2009, we will have training camps where all the members come together from across the country.

Young people have so many distractions these days—is there something that kendo offers that can draw them away from their Wii and computers?
TAKASHI: As good as the Wii fit may be, kendo will be the way to get fit and at the same time becoming mentally fit. In kendo, you will gain mental and physical coordination and the ability to quickly respond to unpredictable situations. Focused around gaining mental focus, harmony and discipline, what you gain through kendo will most likely transpire through many aspects of life. In addition, there are kendo dojos globally and it is a great way to make friends all over the world.
NATSUKO: Kendo is great for getting your mind clear from everything else. When I am practicing, I only focus on myself. Breathing, muscle movements, footwork, arm movements, kiai (voice), the strike. Everything. These days people need a good stress reliever to clear the mind. Computer games are fun. But I think it is important to move your body even more and concentrate on yourself.

Is it critical to start kendo young or can you begin as an adult and gain a high level of expertise?
TAKASHI: Although it is beneficial to start kendo when you are young, I personally have seen many parents start with their children and gain a high level of expertise. It is a matter of how hard you practice and how committed you are.
NATSUKO: I think easier for one to teach kendo to younger children. Children can learn fast. They can learn the movements faster than adults because children can learn with their body. But even if you start later, if you have a will to learn, I think you will be quite good. Everyone has a different reason to practice kendo. Different goals. You just have to find one.

Are there certain qualities that make one person a better kendoka than someone else? Is there a certain kind of personality that is better suited to kendo?
TAKASHI: Like in any organization (sports, clubs, work etc) the committed and hard working ones will be better suited for kendo especially since in the beginning as they cannot simply come in and put on all the equipment and get started. There is a long period where constant practice of the footwork or the correct form of swing is required. It is those that are patient and can get through that stage that persevere in kendo.
NATSUKO: I think there is no such thing as a better kendoka than somebody else. I think we are all different. One might win a match. He or she could be strong skill-wise. But I don’t think that will make that person better. Everybody has different goals in kendo. Mine just happens to be to WIN. I think if somebody reaches their own goal in kendo, it makes that person successful. Once you reach a goal, you make yourself another one. Kendo to me is a life-long journey.

You are trying to attract more kendo practitioners. What would you say to our readers to encourage them to try kendo?
TAKASHI: It is a great way to stay fit and experience Japanese culture. We are a non-profit organization and everyone is a volunteer. In that sense, membership fees are reasonably priced (you can check this out on our website www.vancouverkendoclub.com). If you are looking for a family event, this can be great as well. Kendo can be enjoyed by all ages, generally beginning at the age of six. Hence, if you want to experience something more than just a sport, a way to learn respect and teamwork, this may be ideal for you.

Talk about your dojo – what makes it special to you?
TAKASHI: To me the Vancouver Kendo Club has become a part of my life and in a sense a lot like family. Many of us in the dojo have grown up together and have pushed each other along the way. Vancouver Kendo Club is extremely family oriented as well in that many times, when an individual in a family joins, the entire family ends up joining. Over the years, this has created a close social network with everyone being supportive of each other. Our dojo is extremely welcoming as well and we have visitors from around the world come practice with us on a regular basis. All in all, it is special to me because of the great people that make up the dojo.

Vancouver Kendo Club
Head sensei: Chouzaburo Isa.
Membership: The Vancouver Kendo Club takes in beginners in September and April in order to ensure that they are taught good fundamentals during the crucial early stages. People with kendo experience (3-kyu and above) can join at any time of the year.

Practices
Open Practice: Mondays, 7pm to 9pm.
MacCorkindale Elementary School
6100 Battison St., Vancouver.
3-kyu and Over: Thursdays, 8pm to 10pm.
Charles Rummel Centre, 3630 Lozells Ave., Burnaby.
Open Practice: Fridays, 7:30pm to 10pm.
Charles Rummel Centre, 3630 Lozells Ave., Burnaby.
People are encouraged to come out to a practice to see what kendo is about. People of all ages are accepted. Children can start as young as 5-6 years old.  Most start around age 9 or 10.
More information: www.vancouverkendoclub.com.
E-mail: info@vancouverkendoclub.com

Although he passed away in 2006, Mr. Jack Rose is an unforgettable person for me. The impression I had of him was of a gentle Canadian, and it was hard to imagine from his reserved and quiet personality that he actually experienced severe maltreatment during his captivity as a prisoner of war under the Japanese military. Although he faced a strong backlash from his former fellow prisoners-of-war, he was an earnest supporter of the Redress movement, when Japanese Canadians sought to rectify wartime injustices inflicted on them by the Canadian government.

He was born in 1920 to Jewish Canadian parents in Vancouver, BC, and graduated from Kitsilano high school with honours. When he could not find a job after graduation—it was during the great depression—he started working as a telegraph delivery man for CPR, where his father had been working for many years as a telegraph operator. While working as a telegraph delivery man, he studied to be a qualified telegraph operator and had just obtained his license when World War II broke out.

Prisoner of war of the Japanese military in Hong Kong
Considering it his patriotic duty as a Canadian, he joined the army in 1940. He became a member of the Signal Corps, and was sent overseas in October, 1941. On the military ship he was not informed of specific destination, but told only it would be a dangerous mission. He landed on Hong Kong in November, 1941. On December 25th—less than a month after the Asia Pacific War broke out—more than 1,600 Canadian soldiers, including Jack Rose, were captured and kept as prisoners of war by the Japanese military. With that, the harsh 1,065 days as prisoners of war began.

In a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp, he proposed to the Japanese in charge of the camp that he learn the Japanese language because he wanted to keep his brain active. In response, the Japanese offered him study materials. Kanji was too difficult to learn, but he mastered katakana and later on, became capable to carry on daily conversation in Japanese. But being proficient in Japanese led to new difficulties: When Canadian prisoners could not understand what a Japanese soldier was commanding them to do they were abused and they asked him to help sort it out, but before he knew it, he would be “involved in the bad end of a mêlée” with the Japanese soldier.

In 1943, he was transferred from the camp in Hong Kong to Japan where he was subjected to backbreaking labour work, something that constituted a breach of the Geneva Convention. He worked as a welder at a shipyard in Tsurumi near Yokohama, Japan. The daily earning was only ten sen. One month’s pay was enough to buy one package of cigarettes. The food situation was extremely poor. Brown rice was their main diet, which was actually better for them because it saved some from beri-beri as the husks on rice contain Vitamin B1. Occasionally they got a little bit of unrecognizable meat which appeared in a soup. In 1945, Japan lost the war. On the ship bound for home, the 800 former prisoners-of-war on board, after four years of starvation, continued shoving food into their mouths. The cooks, overwhelmed with puzzlement, had to work 24 hours a day for nearly three weeks to feed the passengers.

After Jack’s return to Canada he married in 1946. Although he had returned to work in the telegraph department of CPR, with his family’s encouragement and persuasion he looked for a career in different fields. He eventually found the insurance business interesting and worked in insurance for many years. On a record of an interview written in the mid-1980’s, he noted, “I had nightmares for over thirty years. I used to dream, not necessarily that I was a prisoner-of-war with the Japanese, but that people were chasing me and that I’d be cornered in a cul de sac and I couldn’t get away and they would be coming after me. And I’d wake up in a cold sweat. I used to speak Japanese in my sleep at night, and I would dream that I was incarcerated somewhere.” This is a clear example of Post Traumatic Syndrome Depression (PTSD).

Support Redress for Japanese Canadians
For us Japanese Canadians, Mr. Rose was an unforgettable person. He was a man with vision and courage that made him to support Redress for Japanese Canadians. Even though he had been supportive of redress for former prisoners of war of the Japanese, he did not like to get involved with the association of Hong Kong Veterans (formerly the Japanese Prisoners-of-War Camp Survivors) who insisted on redress for themselves as he found the group only looked back at their past. In 1985, he happened to know that there was a Redress movement for Japanese Canadians. As a Jewish Canadian, he saw a connection between the deprivation of human rights experienced by Japanese Canadians and the anti-Semitism which led to the Holocaust. Although he had been maltreated by the Japanese soldiers during his captivity, he also encountered some kind–hearted Japanese civilians. With these experiences, he may have had a sense of affinity towards Japanese and Japanese Canadians.

The Hong Kong veterans were then insisting that redress for the former prisoners of war should be prioritized and they disapproved of Redress for the Japanese Canadians. Mr. Rose contacted the Vancouver JCCA (Japanese Canadian Citizens Association) expressing his support toward Redress for Japanese Canadians. He often attended Redress meetings. One time, he addressed the meeting saying, “They (the group of former prisoners of wars camp survivors) felt they should be taken care of first. They couldn’t see that it was two completely different issues.” He believed that the wartime deprivation of human rights of the Japanese Canadians initiated by the Canadian government was in total contradiction with Canada’s war aims of defending democracy and the very reasons why he enlisted and served. His beliefs caused him to be ostracized by the veterans, his former comrades.

Up to now, I have kept in touch with his daughter, Valerie, who used to attend Redress meetings with him. His family has still maintained valuable war-time records and mementos, including yellowed post-cards sent to his parents from the Japanese prisoner-of-war camps. As the 20th anniversary of the Japanese Canadian Redress Settlement is approaching, I recall Mr. Rose with fond memories.

Notes:
- A Japanese version of this article appeared in the July, 2008 issue of the JCCA Bulletin, p.62.
- An excellent article on Jack Rose, A Soldier’s Story, written by Nancy Suzuki appeared in the December, 1991 issue of the JCCA Bulletin, pp.20-22.

The specialized equipment came directly from Japan, a suit costing upwards of $100, a great deal of money in those days. Visiting instructors from Japan would pass through occasionally, supplementing the instruction of the local instructors, and sometimes awarding dan grades.

Beginning in the early 1930s, tournaments were held regularly in British Columbia and  Washington State. Canadian dan holders tended to do well in competition (shiai). By 1940 a typical season saw a Seattle Kendo Kai tournament in November, a Hokubei Butokukai tournament in late January (venues alternated between Seattle, Tacoma, and Gresham, Oregon), and a Steveston or Vancouver tournament in mid-February.

The bombing of Pearl Harbor and the subsequent uprooting of the Canadian and American Japanese communities closed down all the dojos. Interestingly, most Japanese Americans rejected kendo as a form of cultural nationalism during the war, while Japanese Canadians continued to practice it. A kendo club at the Angler POW camp in Ontario was operating as early as 1943. The dojo was known as Shoko Dojo, or “Mr. Matsushita’s Lakeside Kendo Club.” The reference was to its location, near Lake Superior, and to its head instructor, 25-year old Motoo Matsushita. Equipment consisted of about a dozen sets of kendo armour and assorted shinai [bamboo practice weapons] that the Canadian YMCA arranged to have shipped to Angler from storage sites in British Columbia. The Shoko Dojo, which had 50-60 members, held two tournaments, one in August 1944 and another in August 1945. Most members had no previous kendo experience, but by the time they left three years later many were ranked 1-dan.

There were kendo clubs in other locations during the war. The Japanese Canadian National Museum collection includes a photo showing members of the kendo club at Kaslo, British Columbia in 1944. At the Buddhist church in Raymond, Alberta, Moriharu Tanigami taught kendo to about forty students. Tanigami returned to Steveston after the restrictions were lifted and Japanese Canadians were allowed to return to the coast in 1949. Tanigami and Rintaro Hayashi almost immediately set about reorganizing what would become the Steveston Kendo Club. In 1972 the City of Richmond, the Steveston Community Society, and the Japanese Canadian Community Association jointly financed a Martial Arts Centre. Offering judo, karate, aikido, and kendo, the Centre therefore played an important role in preserving Japanese Canadian culture into the twenty-first century. The Vancouver Kendo Club reformed in the early sixties.

Source: Kendo in Canada, 1900-1950 by Joseph Svinth from Nikkei Images, Autumn 2002.

July 28 To August 1, 2008
This year is the 20th anniversary of the Japanese Canadian Redress Settlement of September 22, 1988. It‘s been 62 years since my family and I left the New Denver Internment Camp and moved to Edmonton Alberta. Our move had been part of the federal government’s resettlement program, removing all people of the Japanese race from BC. Dick Nakamura, Roy Katsuyama and I planned to celebrate this 20th anniversary by taking a car trip and visiting the former internment sites.

There had been eight internment sites in the Slocan Valley in 1942—New Denver, Rosebery, Nelson Ranch, Harris Ranch, Slocan City, Bay Farm, and Lemon Creek. East of New Denver along Highway 31A was Sandon; on Kootenay Lake was Kaslo, the administration center of the BC Security Commission. There were also two self-supporting internment sites in the Kootenays: Greenwood and Grand Forks.

July 28, 2008
After boarding the ferry at Swartz Bay at 6:00AM, Roy Katsuyama and I crossed over to Tsawwassen and drove to Hope. Unfortunately, Dick Nakamura was unable to join us for the trip. We took Route #3, the Crowsnest Highway, to Osoyoos, where we stopped at a lakeshore gazebo for an obento lunch before driving to Greenwood where we took pictures of the town. In Grand Forks, we interviewed Saburo Nakade (Roy’s Uncle George) and his wife, Kikumi. They had been living there since internment in 1942. Saburo was a spry 85 years, with a full head of hair and wonderful memory. He was the only one of his family of nine siblings, parents, grandmother and other relatives to remain in Grand Forks after the internment. He was presently upset by the bureaucratic obstacles in trying to subdivide land he had at Christina Lake and was busy trying to surmount them. He obviously was not going to let age slow him down. We arrived at Ainsworth Hot Springs at 6:30pm. There we enjoyed an hour long soak in the hot springs with its unique, cave/tunnel steam bath setting. Our travel-weary bodies were refreshed and we enjoyed a leisurely late supper in their restaurant.

July 29, 2008
After breakfast, we enjoyed another half hour morning soak in the hot springs. The drive to Kaslo was only 22kms. We arrived early for our meeting with Ian Fraser, curator at Langham Cultural Centre museum. A large new building was noted along the beach. After finding our way into the compound of this spa/condominium we met one of the owners, who was busy with electrical wiring. Rene Renaud introduced himself as one of the investors. He had spent five years in Japan and claimed to be an aikido master. One of his disciples was setting up shop in Victoria. Most of the condominiums were being sold to Albertans and Americans.

Ian Fraser and Alice Windsor, the administrator, met us at the Nikkei Museum in the Langham Cultural Centre and gave us a tour. Along the walls of stairwells and corridors were historic photographs of The New Canadian staff, their offices and copies of stories and front pages dating from 1942-1946. All the staff seemed enthusiastic and determined to publish the only Nikkei newspaper allowed. They were pictured not only working but also having fun. The Langham Hotel had been used as housing for internee families and single men. Now it was a museum, art gallery and a theatre. The play Naomi’s Road was performed here. Walking down the main street, Ian pointed out the 1898 building which had housed 200 internees but now was being renovated into a hotel; the Kootenian Building, where The New Canadian newspaper had been published during those years; and a building which had been a warehouse and became the first internment school. At lunch at the Silver Spoon we met Aya Higashi, age 85. She had been a teacher in Slocan City, New Denver, and then Kaslo, where she had been a teacher at the Kaslo High School for many years. Aya had been an extraordinary and effective community volunteer, and had received a special BC citizens’ award, the first person outside the Vancouver area to be awarded such an honour.

Going west on Highway 31A we came to the junction where we turned south onto a small road leading to Sandon. As we approached, we thought that it was deserted, but not so. There was a home-made sign on the side of the road which said “89 brothels & 28 saloons” (that was many years ago). At the museum, Judith Maltz, a lively lady, showed us photographs of the internment. 1000 Nikkei internees lived in the camp guarded by one Mountie—an Irish Canadian (in a newsletter, he noted that if there had been 1000 Irish, 2000 Mounties would have been required). Along the opposite bank of Carpenter Creek there were piles of shiplap lumber (could they have been from some of the internees houses?). On the main gravel street there were still some abandoned, derelict houses. Sandon must have been a dreary site in the winter time since the high surrounding mountains blocked a lot of the sunlight during the day.

Arriving at “Sweet Dreams” B&B in New Denver, Jeff, the owner, gave us each a clean, modern room with ensuite bathrooms. The house had been the administration building during the internment. Looking out from my bedroom window there was a lawn and fruit trees—this had once been the site of the baseball field. The chicken-wire backstop would have been just below my window. A flood of memories of exciting plays and cheering crowds filled my thoughts as I stood outside looking over the area. Across the street, towards the lakeshore, was the old cenotaph. Many of the Nikkei internees had their pictures taken at this site. That evening Jeff cooked us a delicious halibut dinner with peach pie and ice cream for dessert.

July 30, 2008
After a breakfast of cheese, potatoes and mushroom omelette, fruits, juice, cereal and coffee, we drove over to the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre where we met with Sakaye Hashimoto (manager) and Nobby Hayashi, the former manager. Nobby was a friend from the internment days. The Memorial Centre has two original shiplap/cedar shake houses and three buildings. One of the buildings, which was the original community hall, is now a museum with historic photographs and artifacts from the internment years.

The centrepiece is a beautiful Japanese garden with a small bridge over a dry bed. We toured the site on a boardwalk which connects the houses and the buildings. The houses are furnished as they would have been during the internment—a virtual reality show—with two outhouses!! There were several tourists viewing the Memorial Centre, some from eastern US. The Chamber of Commerce in New Denver told us that the Centre is the most popular attraction in this area.

Nelson Ranch is on a hill about a mile east of the town. At this site the old single men’s bunkhouse with its original cedar shake wall is still standing but is now used as a barn.

Sakaye took us across town to meet Mrs. Kuri Takenaka, 96 years old and still living alone. She remembered my mother in the Camp—noting that she was a very beautiful lady. Visiting her was her niece, Emi Mori who lived across the street. Both women still reside in the original renovated shiplap internment houses. These had been relocated from the Orchard to the town site of New Denver. Emi was a school teacher in Lemon Creek and when that camp closed, she moved to New Denver and stayed.

In the afternoon we drove south along the spectacular road to Slocan City. At times we were over 1000 ft. above the lake. In Slocan City there are still some old false-fronted buildings along the main street. They looked like the abandoned buildings used as housing for the internees. Driving south, there were some open fields which were on the west side of the highway. Could they have been Bay Farm and Popoff? We later learned that the new highway had been moved further east from the old road which had been closer to Slocan River. Further along, we encountered the sign for the Lemon Creek Lodge. Turning onto a gravel road and traveling some distance, we came to the Lemon Creek Lodge & Campgrounds. Judy and Barry Derco have operated this lodge since 1996.  Barry told us that during the 90s they gave a course on the Nikkei Internment every year for the Elderhostel programme. He showed us a large photographic layout of the Lemon Creek camp which showed the location of houses with the names of the families, bathhouses and high school. The area of the present campgrounds impinges on the site of the original internment camp. An old Japanese garden was the only remnant to survive. Barry informed us that the new highway had been placed further east of the old road. This made it difficult to identify the sites of the internment camps.

That evening we visited Tsuneko (Koko) Kokubo and Paul Gibbons, who live on the side of a mountain about 20 kilometres south of New Denver. They have built a large modern home using found lumber and material left by a timber company on their site and have their own hydro system for electricity and a water system. Koko, a talented artist, led us up a hill to a separate cabin which was her studio with its tatami floor. We enjoyed a wonderful Japanese supper made by Koko. She told us that after the internment her family had returned to the west coast and Steveston.

July 31, 2008
After breakfast, we drove to the Orchard and toured the Kohan Gardens. The garden is located along the shores of Lake Slocan. Several ponds, some with floating lilies, were scattered through the area. A teahouse stood on a lawn at the centre of the garden. Everywhere, there were different types of trees and shrubs. Benches were placed in spaces where one could sit, reflect and meditate. This garden was a joint project of the town of New Denver and the Slocan Lake Garden Society.  As we drove to Nakusp, we stopped to look for some trace of the internment in Rosebery. All we could find were pieces of shiplap along a grassy knoll overlooking the beach in an open area which was being used to store logs.

Approaching Nakusp, we detoured to the Hot Springs road. The Nakusp Hot Springs is half the size of Ainsworth, but the facility appears newer. The spring water is hot and crystal clear. Lying deep between forested mountains there is a wonderful ambience with nature. In Nakusp, we walked along the Promenade to a Japanese Garden established by the town. It was well-tended and looked out over a scenic view of Upper Arrow Lake.

As we sat down for lunch in Fauquier, we entered into a conversation with Harold Mori. Originally from New Denver, he had become a teacher, but with post graduate studies at the University of Alberta became involved with volleyball and was now an international referee in that sport. He and his wife live in Vegerville but he returns often to New Denver.

After crossing to Needles and Highway #6 to Kelowna, we arrived at Merritt that evening.

August 1, 2008
Driving the Coquihalla Highway to Tsawwassen, we boarded the 2pm ferry and completed our trip into the past. Both Roy and I felt that we had accomplished our goal—to re-visit the past and see what has happened to sites of the Nikkei internment after 62 years. Personally this experience has given me a chance to add an epilogue to my book Images of Internment.

Henry Shimizu MD.,FRCS.,CM
Victoria, August 11, 2008

Sensei Yasuhiro Miyakawa, Resident Minister of the BC Interior Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples (Kamloops, Kelowna, Vernon), held a 12-hour Continuous Chanting Marathon at the Kamloops Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temple on August 6, 2008, to commemorate the tragic loss of life that resulted from the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima on that date, 63 years ago and also the victims of Nagasaki three days later.

Surrounded by thousands of tiny paper cranes, Miyakawa Sensei sat cross-legged on a pillow on the hardwood floor for 12 hours and chanted the Pure Land sutras (The Larger Sutra, The Contemplation Sutra, The Amida Sutra, and Shoshinge) in English. He remained in that deeply devotional position from 6 am to 6 pm, without breaks, water, nor food during that time, while chanting the sutras. He was joined in the chanting by some members of the Kamloops, Kelowna, and Vernon Temples from time to time throughout the day. He was able to read through the Sutras two and a half times during the twelve hours.

Over 15,000 paper cranes, made by temple members, decorated the temple and served as a symbol of peace.

The public were invited to attend and chant with Sensei, strike the bell, offer incense, fold a paper crane as a symbol of peace, or watch a video on the Hiroshima bombing. Over 50 participants came and went throughout the day, some to watch, others to participate in the chanting. A most successful event.