Veterans

They Strengthened Their Bond as Brothers After Serving Opposing Sides in the Battle of Okinawa By Byrnes Yamashita Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Do you sometimes think about how a simple twist of fate changed your life and the lives of others? As the world commemorates the 75th anniversary of the end of World War....

Nisei Veterans Memorial Center Telling Their Story Inside and Out Melissa Tanji Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Crisp, colorless images of young American soldiers of Japanese ancestry are coming to life on a concrete canvas on the windswept oceanfront campus of the Nisei Veterans Memorial Center. At the center, situated where the towns of Kahului and Wailuku meet,....

Susan Nunes Published with Permission Sketches by Ryo Shinoda Editor’s note: In observance of Veterans Day, we are pleased to share with you this excerpt from writer Susan Nunes’ short story, “Biffontaine.” It is part of her collection of short stories titled “Paradise Café: A Family Memoir in Stories.” Nunes is a Hilo native who....

Four World War II Nisei Veterans Awarded French Legion of Honor Medal Gregg K. Kakesako Special to The Hawai‘i Herald It’s been nearly three-quarters of a century since the Nisei soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team were engaged in one of the most vicious battles of World War II....

Forgotten ... and Now Remembered Karleen Chinen Originally published March 6, 1987 A woman lovingly arranges a bunch of fresh-cut flowers and leans them against the stark black and white wall. She brings her right hand up to her lips and tenderly kisses her fingertips as her eyes remain fixed on a name etched on....

Memorial Service Brings Some Measure of Closure for Two Former POWs Gregg K. Kakesako Special to The Hawai‘i Herald For the first time in nearly three-quarters of a century, 12 Okinawan prisoners of war who were captured during the bloody Battle of Okinawa in World War II and who died while imprisoned in Hawai‘i were....

Hawai‘i’s Consul General of Japan Shares Memories of His Father with MIS Veterans Yasushi Misawa Published with Permission Editor’s note: Since his posting in Hawai‘i in mid-2015 as Consulate General of Japan in Honolulu, Yasushi Misawa has delivered dozens of greetings and remarks, even kampai toasts, and been involved in countless ceremonial presentations around town.....

Gov. David Y. Ige Governor of Hawai‘i (2015 to present) Aloha . . . It truly is an honor and a privilege for me to be here today as governor of the state of Hawai‘i. My grandparents, the Issei, immigrated to Hawai‘i from Japan and Okinawa more than a hundred years ago in search of....

Retired MG Arthur Ishimoto Published with Permission Editor’s note: The following remarks were delivered by MIS veteran and retired MG Arthur Ishimoto at the luncheon banquet of the Military Intelligence Service Veterans National Reunion on March...

Editor’s note: The resignation in late May of U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki left many in Hawai‘i with uneasy feelings. Like Hawai‘i astronaut Ellison Onizuka, the first American astronaut of Japanese...