66_Kimiko-Murakami_Alice-Tanaka.mp3

otter.ai

21.01.2023

no

Unknown Speaker 0:01
You came here right up to the First World War.

Unknown Speaker 0:03
Yeah. I come here I went to Japan.

Unknown Speaker 0:09
Where were you born? Steve? A little while ago

Unknown Speaker 0:20
I bought 190 No 490 No four. Oh my goodness people

Unknown Speaker 0:32
know well I've been talking to some of them but I don't I think do you think you're the oldest Now

Unknown Speaker 0:39
basically this mrs. Holman you know she's a manual but she's dealing with that next door she's the same as me but

Unknown Speaker 0:54
that's great like you you're always

Unknown Speaker 0:57
up and down with

Unknown Speaker 1:00
what you've got that nice little cart there to get around. That was great

Unknown Speaker 1:05
you know I don't want to go wrong. I don't need it

Unknown Speaker 1:11
Oh really? Wait you bought golf course.

Unknown Speaker 1:19
Oh, I see that back there. So you came here you came back in ninth you went to Japan to go to school?

Unknown Speaker 1:27
And that's about 8090 miles what right now

Unknown Speaker 1:35
and you came to Salt Springs? No,

Unknown Speaker 1:37
I prefer to grab my fish patient No. Send them by you. They got a great before but so they sold and we bought them where was it? I'm sure enough nice big bass.

Unknown Speaker 2:12
How much land did you have?

Unknown Speaker 2:15
My father had that 200 acres 200 acres down now. No doubt on this first year we bought a 50 acres and he have another 50 up the rainbow and the web version 10 But he has 100 acres really smelly wish there was government to be using we never had a fire since I had 70 Naked nice land and my husband took about a 10 year to clean up you see that? No boo there was nothing just pick and shovel you know the hard work and we clean up we put on this really happy three acres strawberry all kind of bass really ready to pick so government did my husband way? My to Oregon March 241 Yeah. So team and did they send them to Jasper wherever they are? Or?

Unknown Speaker 3:23
Where did did you go with him?

Unknown Speaker 3:24
No, no. We can go with so I have bought the two 3000 Chicken maybe 5005 Kids Yeah, Japanese said about the five people from Teesside since

Unknown Speaker 3:47
he was a Japanese citizen. He was a couple my husband husband was so what happened to you and the children in the farm?

Unknown Speaker 3:56
Oh, behind and let me see how many. Oh, April. That you mean by April April 21 or something I can remember. Then we have to move. So we sold chicken and my ass but it was so much to coming. And I saw her daughter comes to my daughter she she knows. Hi

Unknown Speaker 4:32
tell them how they're built. It was built mother. Well, it's been 50 years right? They had anniversary basically. And we were talking about it and at that time 50 years ago. Gavin mod had come around to all of our the Japanese community and said he would like us out Want to donate to the building fund? Because we had a lot of children going to school. I didn't like that after words, but that's what he said. So at that time my father gave $75 There was a lot of money,

Unknown Speaker 5:22
what year, two years ago, two years from now, elementary

Unknown Speaker 5:26
school was going to be built. Right. And a lot of other Japanese in this community gave to that fun, but there were many people who couldn't afford monetary fun to donate. So they gave a labor of one week labor working on you see, but I'm sure that the New York people on this island don't know how much the Japanese community gave to the school and they fought for us fire they gave to the community.

Unknown Speaker 6:05
Okay, how big was the Japanese community? How many families?

Unknown Speaker 6:21
spoke about eight families. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker 6:23
but you got to call those batch

Unknown Speaker 6:25
numbers too. Oh, then the altogether? 11 either.

Unknown Speaker 6:32
There were a lot of Japanese people who helped to clear the land on this island originally.

Unknown Speaker 6:39
Yes, my mother would tell you those things. But I thought I'd like to bring to bring that up. You know, they had Oregon fund and they gave the Oregon to St. George's Church Alene, and all these different things. And I was quite happy because when the 50th anniversary came, and there was no mention of how much the Japanese community gave to that school. And then I've come across a lot of racism from some of these families, you know, they making racial remarks, whatever, making it hard on Richard. Yeah, and I wanted to tell them hey, if you don't like the Japanese don't send your kids to that school because because they held there's a lot of nails pounded in there that the Japanese found it in.

Unknown Speaker 7:37
Well, you know, that would be such an interesting thing. It's such an interesting article for something like the drift code or get it and I know Mary Davidson just be married McLennan from the south and she she's been reading a series of historical articles. And that would be a wonderful,

Unknown Speaker 7:51
but well, you know, I write a lot, but I was thinking of putting it in the driftwood. But I just threw up my hand because I thought, Oh, heck, every time I write there, there's such a big commotion going on, because I tell the truth as it is. And a lot of people get offended.

Unknown Speaker 8:14
Well, you could always try talking to Mary and again her iterated give her all the facts.

Unknown Speaker 8:19
No, it's okay. I felt that what's what, what is there to tell these people with the onus, appreciate us? Why bring it to the forefront? Oh, I think it should, you know, and then I want to tell you that because of Japanese, most of them are Canadians gave to this community and during wartime we left you know, the central cemetery up there. Yes. Mother will tell you a long time ago when she was little this lady gave a plot next to the white cemetery because there was no place to bury the Japanese because they wouldn't allow oriental to be buried next to the white. Okay. So during the war, they took very good care of the rest of the central cemetery. It cut the grass and everything. And when mom and dad came home, that place was a mess. People had pushed over the tombstones and everything.

Unknown Speaker 9:29
It's really, I mean, it's just incredible. What happened. Yeah, to

Unknown Speaker 9:33
see a lot of those people. A lot of them are still alive. Yeah. But mother was quite angry because why should people take their hatred against dead people? They're dead right? And now they segregated the Japanese cemetery in You know what they've been doing? They've been burying all the Caucasians into the Japanese cemetery because they didn't have enough room. And I brought that back to the cemetery commission, their committee and the Undertaker, and I told them, hey, it wasn't good enough for you people. So it's still I just we just went up to the cemetery on Sunday. Yeah. And it's still there bringing more people. And there's that section there that my de mer kameez had donated money for our family. Pretty soon if I hadn't said anything, there'll be burying it right smack in the middle. And then, like I told you during the war, they pushed down the tombstones. So these Undertaker's think that there's nobody buried, where they're digging, but there are, and I am so angry. I said to Richard, hey, I'm gonna go off my rocker and go dig the bodies up and throw it away. I told him, I won't do that. But I was really angry.

Unknown Speaker 11:14
Yeah, well, that's terrible. thing to do. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 11:17
And since I've lived on this island, born and educated and walked, I've walked everywhere. When I was here. And I'm really offended. People who come to this island start bringing their hangups I would say, Yeah, you know, and in this day and age when we supposedly have the charter of Canada, which says that each individual is supposed to be treated equally under the justice system. There is

Unknown Speaker 11:56
at least some, I know, some recognition, which, but

Unknown Speaker 12:02
we, you know, we like to be treated as human. We don't want people to love us, because there's people we don't like either. Sure. But I don't like some of these innuendos and the troubles that people make on this island. I'm really disappointed. Because I consider this a waste as well. People should live together just a small island to think oh, yeah, I know. I really agree. Yeah. And then all the trouble that we've gone through and my mother's 86 Why should she be going through this kind of thing at this time and age? You know,

Unknown Speaker 12:44
she was telling me a little bit about I didn't call him your mother. You were telling me about when you what happened in the war, and they took your your husband away by Jasper,

Unknown Speaker 12:55
white, yellow Han.

Unknown Speaker 12:57
So where did you go? After you sit? You were just telling me that you want

Unknown Speaker 13:02
to see in a barn? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Dirty, dirty barn. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 13:12
How long were you there?

Unknown Speaker 13:15
I think maybe two months. So we are very happy. We have people over years.

Unknown Speaker 13:24
And you had to take all your five children. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 13:27
My mother didn't have anyone to know. We just loved everything. They said, Oh, that's another thing. I want to tell you. Recently, the Moroni government signed that bill the redress so that everybody could get $21,000 My father died six months before that was signed. And he's suffered terribly. And he didn't get anything but it's not the money per se. You didn't live to see any recognition of wrong that was done. And soon after, when I was here, some people made the remark Hey, you, you people shouldn't get that 21,000 How about those soldiers in Hong Kong that suffered this etc, etc. You know, you just shouldn't have this and I said, Hey, I'm a Canadian, but Japanese or Japanese or different type of people. And I said to them You know, I would give them the money. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 14:47
Yeah, if they would just take too close bags, leave their home and go live in a stable.

Unknown Speaker 14:57
What happened after you stayed there? Pretty Two months could you come back to Salt Springs? Or was that

Unknown Speaker 15:04
can come back? Which course or 4649 March we could come back to which course

Unknown Speaker 15:17
where were you after you were at the Hastings Center where

Unknown Speaker 15:21
did Greenwood

Unknown Speaker 15:24
Where's Greenwood?

Unknown Speaker 15:25
Greenwood is abandoned mining town in the interior near the American border oh yeah so race see it's nice yeah can

Unknown Speaker 15:43
pretty I guess the way you were living with not to

Unknown Speaker 15:47
valley like this and it's all dry on dry on

Unknown Speaker 15:52
oh yeah I've seen those places

Unknown Speaker 15:55
I stood doing very first they put us undertake undertaking you know Mr. yourself

Unknown Speaker 16:14
the man who owned all sunset drive I'm sorry what was his name? Iwasaki? Yeah no. All sunset drive

Unknown Speaker 16:23
640 acres. Somebody that sings and made money

Unknown Speaker 16:34
but we didn't have any money.

Unknown Speaker 16:37
How did you Did they give you to the Government give you some kind of oh, wait

Unknown Speaker 16:40
a minute. We didn't have any money.

Unknown Speaker 16:44
Because everything you had to leave everything.

Unknown Speaker 16:47
So all we were scrounging for money. Wild roots. Wild leaves. To make to Greenwood word. Go mother. Number two, where did we go? Next? Yeah, they shipped us it again to lemon Creek. No, very far. No.

Unknown Speaker 17:22
It will go. We went to the audition.

Unknown Speaker 17:27
We're about to Norberto was it

Unknown Speaker 17:32
a bad race? What was it like to do? Weeks? You know, she could beat but my husband had.

Unknown Speaker 17:43
Oh, appendicitis operation.

Unknown Speaker 17:47
So very strong. Then they send back to

Unknown Speaker 17:51
So your husband was back with you? Was he in green? Green.

Unknown Speaker 17:58
After after, okay.

Unknown Speaker 18:01
So then we change

Unknown Speaker 18:05
race, we had to come back because my father couldn't work. On the Sugarpea he had the operation appendicitis operation. So the government sent us back to the interior to those camps. Yeah. So where did we go? Mother? We went to SLoCaT. Slocan? Valley UVU.

Unknown Speaker 18:27
I've been there actually. Yeah, I've seen that place.

Unknown Speaker 18:29
Then when they shipped us to Roseberry

Unknown Speaker 18:36
15 times 15.

Unknown Speaker 18:41
Marriages by the lake? Towards a smoker. Okay. Yeah. Then we said to you, Denver? Yes.

Unknown Speaker 18:58
It's how would you like what would happen? Would someone come to you and say, Okay, you have to move again? Is that how

Unknown Speaker 19:06
it would work? That's a government order.

Unknown Speaker 19:08
So would were you with a group of families who would also be moved. With those families that you knew at all they weren't from from here. They were just people who happen to be who were Japanese who were being sent.

Unknown Speaker 19:23
It's just like a big camp. Where do you what kind of housing did you have? When you were in? Great to tell you about the housing? It was

Unknown Speaker 19:34
to buy at

Unknown Speaker 19:39
lumber, you know, the sides were lumber with tar paper. And the winters were so severe that ice on the river

Unknown Speaker 19:51
inside? Yeah, it

Unknown Speaker 19:53
would turn green because it was so cool. And all the nails here had crossed on it we had crossed inside the rooms.

Unknown Speaker 20:06
How old were you children through all of this? How old was the oldest and

Unknown Speaker 20:12
I was about 50.

Unknown Speaker 20:14
He loves you

Unknown Speaker 20:19
telling you this experience has it's so ingrained into me that the inhuman treatment that a government can do so that as long as your face is not white death, they could do they really? And they said, Well, we're not gonna do stuff like this, but then again, oh, excuse me, I shouldn't say white because judo. Putting the wartime act on the French Canadians took their liberties away. That's right. So you see this dangerous?

Unknown Speaker 21:01
Do you think that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is going to protect people against that?

Unknown Speaker 21:05
Well, I bring that up because I hope it's strong because the bill of rights in the United States is surely strong.

Unknown Speaker 21:16
Notice the wars that they send governments and everybody just like gas, but mericans Japan never win this war. So they sent back two years ever. So two years? No, just to your second year. And they give back or land and everything. Not discounted.

Unknown Speaker 21:43
You know the the you know, sharp yesterday, you know that. Yes, my, my mother's father mother owned how many acres on the earth all around there and the mountains 200 acres and we live next to them. And Promat can grow before that. Power Line station was there to see the valley where we live. And the trauma that occurred when my father and mother came back. What happened they went to see their place I mean they can't get back the government soldier to a bedroom just think it's a trauma if you

Unknown Speaker 22:30
listen the whole thing sounds like the most incredible trauma to me as soon

Unknown Speaker 22:35
as my my old crafty producer show me I don't know. So two three days

Unknown Speaker 22:48
yeah, I have to tell you it's very very funny thing that a lot of people who have bought Japanese property on this island something very fortunate has occurred to me very ill has committed suicide my husband and wives have divorced with bitterness. I don't know what it is. But that's what happens

Unknown Speaker 23:22
really wavy lines get the hot

Unknown Speaker 23:29
so how did you get the well one ask about the other Japanese families did any of the other families come back to Saltspring? After no but did you have you did you keep in touch with any of the people that knew you so you come

Unknown Speaker 23:45
back to the cemetery? What time by

Unknown Speaker 24:01
we used to have a nice farm here but my husband passed away so we can't do anymore.

Unknown Speaker 24:07
No, it's a lot of work. Isn't everybody want

Unknown Speaker 24:09
to buy this property? Because close to town? So nice. six acres. I don't want to sell when did you did you buy this property then after the war? Is that what happened when you came back? We come back here 1954 And my husband so like this is our jungle? We bought this house two small houses. So

Unknown Speaker 24:37
where were you between 1949 and 1954.

Unknown Speaker 24:41
Anyway, we they don't do we stay in certain

Unknown Speaker 24:48
regards. Oh, yeah.

Unknown Speaker 24:49
We we worked especially in the sugar beet field. Then you signed the contract. We were like slaves.

Unknown Speaker 24:59
Yeah. With this was during the war? Yeah. Okay. So you had to sign a contract

Unknown Speaker 25:05
with the farmer, they would choose whoever family they want to work for. In order to get our money, we would have to go from thinning the sugar beet to topping it. To that span, we wouldn't get any money. My mother is small, isn't she? She She and I can still pick you with that whole thing. Miles and miles, you know, the roads are miles, they do one whole day to go down there. And mother had to leave her little children by the irrigation ditch. It's a wonder they didn't die, you know, mosquitoes. Yeah. And one of my sisters watch them and Daddy and I have thinning, thinning is to make spaces between each plant so they'll grow. And later on, it was reading time in the fitter feet of Alberta. And excuse me, sometimes winter would come very, sometimes September. The Blizzard would come in here we have the sugar beets in the ground. And we tried to get the sugar beet out of the ground and top it and it was just wet. Heavy. They were how many pounds? Would you say those sugar beets were mother? Those heavy? Well, yeah. You'd have to put it on your need and top it. Take the top you throw it on to the wagon. And I'm telling you, I see my mother doing all that hard work. I like to see all these people who are so critical of us go through what mom did, especially mama and daddy, him. And then finally, we would get paid very low wages. You know, those

Unknown Speaker 27:13
were you paid only if you harvested them you have to you

Unknown Speaker 27:16
sign the contract. Yeah. And during the winter, the severe winter, we had no money. So dad would have to work at get go to maybe five miles away with two teams of horses and bring it home. And he would have to load a wagon all by himself. And then my father come in maybe 50 below zero. And I remember daddy's eyebrows. These were just frosted. And so I always think to myself today, I hear a lot of young people crying. Oh, we can't make it or give us some money to the government, you know, help us. I haven't got compassion for them. I'm sorry. Because I've seen Mom and Dad struggle so hard. No one helped, you know. And when they had to come back here and had to clear the land you see ever Moses Park? Yes. This place was just like that. They had to start their life all over.

Unknown Speaker 28:31
What so what happened? The war ended. And what happened then,

Unknown Speaker 28:37
while they wouldn't let us come home for how many years? Three years after the government didn't still trust us. You know, it's incredible.

Unknown Speaker 28:51
To see three, three men go back to two men if they used to work with so male, dawn to death. So they go back to Toronto. And they doing nobody wants to go back to Jamaica.

Unknown Speaker 29:08
So as soon as you could come back, did you come back to Salt Spring or did you stay in? And we

Unknown Speaker 29:16
did mom and dad and the family didn't have any money. So they worked at this restaurant. My my mother's brother had started and he was having financial difficulties or the family went there.

Unknown Speaker 29:29
It was that in Cardston Yeah, so you were Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 29:35
Yeah, and

Unknown Speaker 29:36
we run and we made

Unknown Speaker 29:47
the jump and then I want to tell you something. We talked to the other. This lady that works for the the Revenue Canada came recently. And did you know A lot of people called up Revenue Canada and said investigate the depths where did they get the money to buy the land know that Revenue Canada came here twice that early well year wasn't

Unknown Speaker 30:18
combat ships is different points maybe testified that's when the beginning I told him I told him you want something to know I have no idea because I didn't want to come but somebody

Unknown Speaker 30:37
told you this island has a lot of hidden things this

Unknown Speaker 30:45
island have a lot of nice people doesn't I guess

Unknown Speaker 30:58
a cottage call it cottage industry. cottage industry is little businesses that people did on this island. Right? They told us to bad you people have to conform. And they made Richard conform to the bylaws at that time and rezone that property. And these other people who were doing business they ignored them. Did you know? Yeah. And then all along. Later on. The place the RCMP member, there was a friend of people who were doing that type of business that Richard was doing. And this RCMP constable came to Richard and told them Hey, you better not compete with our friend. He said we're gonna shoot all of you Dinty mother.

Unknown Speaker 32:03
Yeah, she's reasonable, which you can run this business. So he's still running. I got down down your face and care or your family

Unknown Speaker 32:17
to placement. Yeah, policemen. Not incredible, but

Unknown Speaker 32:22
time knows who he is. And that man knows who he is to but later on the displacement called Richardson. Oh, hey, you boy pick up my hat who treated him like, you know how they treated the blacks. And so Richard, gentle as he is. He went up to the sergeant. I told them, he took a witness up there. And the sergeant sort of quiet that down because he didn't want to lose his job. And that's constable whether he went up to another area,

Unknown Speaker 33:01
yet they end up playing tennis.

Unknown Speaker 33:05
So when mother and dad were first starting here, they vandalized their first crop here.

Unknown Speaker 33:15
The people on the

Unknown Speaker 33:17
Yeah, so just

Unknown Speaker 33:18
before the war or

Unknown Speaker 33:20
they came home and they're trying to make a living. So I couldn't stand that anymore. So I appealed. Why it's 1231 1031. I went and demanded the Western Regional headquarter of RCMP come in investigator I said, I'm going to the media. And I said, during the war, you drag my father out of our home. So I said you owe something to us. So I guess he was jumping up and down. Because I was so mad and he sent three high ranking constable for Victoria, Vancouver. They came,

Unknown Speaker 34:05
they better look good for you then for doing that.

Unknown Speaker 34:09
I don't take any crap from anybody. Yeah, never. But can you imagine them? vandalizing the property here the the crop? And then the another thing is not too long or years back. Not too long ago. Somebody Up the road started complaining about mother and father doing business in the customers parking on Rainbow Road there. enrichers customer parks, they're coming to talk. And he he went to the island trust and said America Amis are making it hazardous for the schoolchildren to work on Rainbow row. And at that year, yeah. Tom Toynbee He, he was the transportation manager of the island trust and he called up the minister in Victoria. They put up no parking signs up here, or did they? I parked there. No, before or before? July. I called him in here. You know, there was a big stink about that. And all these people that know, the American family, they really called up Tom Ford. They told them are good. But the thing is, did you know that? The time is we're very good family friends. This father. Oh, yes. And mama did something to us. And she was very sad.

Unknown Speaker 35:55
So you did have there were some people who you did get along. I mean, who who did seem to respect you? And what?

Unknown Speaker 36:02
Come to our aid.

Unknown Speaker 36:05
During the war? You mean? No, I don't mean during the war. I mean, before the war.

Unknown Speaker 36:10
Before the war, you know, we were supposed to have had a lot of friends because we were involved in the Anglican Church. We were baptized and confirmed. When we were leaving, and all this, no one came to our aid and said, Hey, we were looking after your property or we will help. And that really saddens me. Yeah. Because they said, they made us become Christians, you know, all of these people. If you're Christian, you're supposed to look out for your friends and everything. And yeah, we were really sad. And so nowadays, I've lost my religion. I have God lives within me. That's all I need. I will not go to church. Right? Well, not guys. depressing place to me. To you know, I and then the thing is, when mother and daddy had this little fun, and they're working, and they the church members would come and say Mr. And Mrs. mer. Kami. Would you like to donate something for whatever fun? And my father and mother never denied them? There were some that gave so much to them. They never held anything against that's how my home my mother and daddy were is just sat up there.

Unknown Speaker 37:52
When you came back after the war, how did you get along with the people on the on the island, the white people who had stayed here and

Unknown Speaker 38:03
when we come back here, only two people come to see us. Mrs. B, Mr. And Mrs. B. They come to see us the putting the one chocolate box but another 100 Mrs. B just mother. She bring us lemon cake in them. And another one very new giving us political route and I never see another people never never come to see us. Yeah, we come back here and Rosen Marriott, high school Rishi. They said, we are very, very poor people. They say, you know, everybody said, Are you coming? babysit, but coming? Housework? I said no. My kids never go work. Yeah, let's

Unknown Speaker 39:12
talk about my sisters. When they went to university and got their degrees. My sister Rhodes, who is the vice president at the University, UBC hospital now. She went to this hospital to ask for a job as an RN. And one of the board members says we don't hire jobs last year with that being said. And then my sister got a degree in education and she tried to get a job at this school. The school that my parents and everybody had donated to and they said no, we don't want that Jeff teaching our children so they never got The job board, school board or the hospital forecast what happened. But then again, you look back and say, Oh, you were really angry. You say, Well, too bad for you. They could have given so much to the community.

Unknown Speaker 40:22
Oh, I, I, I've certainly heard myself. I've heard it said on this coast that what happened to the Japanese here has been one of the biggest problems in the economy of BC. But that's part of the reason for the discrimination. Is it Pete The Japanese have worked so hard and did so well. I mean, a lot of it's just simple jealousy. It is, you know, economics.

Unknown Speaker 40:43
Yeah. They wanted to see fishermen wanted to get us out of here. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. And all these farmers wanted to get rid of them. But even now, you can see the backlash, like, Japan is doing so well. So the jealously arises. That's right. And they put us into the same category as the foreign Japanese. You say? So it's a never ending affair. It really is. And I just hope that things would get better. But today, I don't believe it will.

Unknown Speaker 41:27
When you you must have been in school for quite a few years before the war. Yeah, I was. What Which school did you go to? Again? Ganges?

Unknown Speaker 41:36
Well, I used to go to the Catholic school. I mean, the Catholic church up there. Oh, yeah. What's the walk from a way over a sharp road? Right. And I went up, I had to go up there.

Unknown Speaker 41:47
And that is that where the Ganges

Unknown Speaker 41:49
school was? You know, it was a calf right

Unknown Speaker 41:52
behind the bakery. Oh, yeah. Right up to school. In this new school, this you never got,

Unknown Speaker 41:59
I went a year here. Just a year here. But um, yeah, I always think about going into school and having to survive all my thoughts. Kids, taunting me. Yeah. Growing

Unknown Speaker 42:14
up. Were there other Japanese children in in? In the school? There were quite a few families here. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 42:20
Yeah. But we were really talented every day to target. And then I, what I recall very vividly is one time, my lunch was stolen by this boy and a girl. And so I told her, I went to see this teacher of mine. So what he did to me is in front of the whole class, because you see, they didn't have grade one teacher or grade two teacher. It was from grade five to eight, I think. He said, I talked to this boy and girl and they said, you're lying else that they didn't take your lunch. You're the liar. And I was really punished. And I remember freaking era, you know. So class talking about justice. That's why I'm so village radical, and I said even at that time, people weren't fair. Crazy. grew up being pushed around. You have to

Unknown Speaker 43:37
ask you a little bit more about about your parents. What they came, they came to Saltspring. Right. When when you were?

Unknown Speaker 43:46
Yeah. 1919. January 6, we came here.

Unknown Speaker 43:53
And what did they did they live long after them. Or were they? How long were they on? Saltspring?

Unknown Speaker 44:02
Oh, since we came here 1990. Theory. So government takes them out.

Unknown Speaker 44:10
So they my father, grandfather went to went through all that stuff we went through and they went together with her. They separate everybody. No, no compassion, nothing. Anyways, my grandfather ended up in Cardston. With grandmother and my Uncle Jim, and others, they were doing the restaurant and I told you they went into financial bind, you know. And my grandfather actually died of a broken heart. He lost all that land here, you know. And he died in Carson. And my grandmother became bedridden. Soon after My mother. Yeah. So you

Unknown Speaker 45:06
brought her back here back and he she died 57 or the brother told me I got to take care of my mother. So he took everything from mother then never take care. Yeah, but anyway, he died us to one more brothers in Victoria but

Unknown Speaker 45:35
yeah, but they had greenhouses down in the ground and they're harming the greenhouse. My father built that 180

Unknown Speaker 45:44
by 300. So you can do at

Unknown Speaker 45:49
what kind of things did they grow? Tomatoes?

Unknown Speaker 45:53
180. But yeah, it's fair to

Unknown Speaker 45:58
say Mr. Hunt lives on the property where my grandfather and grandmother lived. They were named that creek, O'Connell Creek last year. Mr. Hunt was telling me that when they bought that property, they found so much class in the creek and he couldn't understand where the class came from. So what they had done was battered the greenhouses and dumped bulldoze all the glass into the oak and Oak Creek is named O'Connell Creek is in government archives now because that's what they did recently. But they used to ship their tomatoes to Vancouver on that Princess, Margaret Marguerite that used to come from

Unknown Speaker 46:51
Joan. To Princess Joan. Great. No,

Unknown Speaker 46:55
I think it was Marguerite was it other? It was like a freighter of passenger

Unknown Speaker 47:00
knowing that yet big boat was that Margaret used to come you know, I can't remember the name maneras top people's doing greener. How same is my father?

Unknown Speaker 47:15
Your main island? They

Unknown Speaker 47:16
were Japanese? Yeah, I've heard that there was a very prosperous Japanese community there. With these.

Unknown Speaker 47:22
They ate the Gobi lot. You know, he was the custodian. So we always talk about the you know, custodian, Davis so mad.

Unknown Speaker 47:38
Yeah. But the thing is, he was a young man wonder a long time ago news to do logging and things like that. And he was supposed to be good family friend of mom and dad. Yeah, he said, that time I can picture him. He put his arm around my mother's that Kimiko when you come back, don't worry. Everything will be here. Not even what pair of chopsticks will be gone. When I said that, I think his son was quite offended. You know, because there was so much animosity I had against him. Because he let mom down. And the rest of the people really did.

Unknown Speaker 48:31
Yeah. Did you did you and your husband when you came back? Did you work? Farming? Yes.

Unknown Speaker 48:38
What what did you grow? Right? This is the place

Unknown Speaker 48:41
so you can't was vegetables and berries are

Unknown Speaker 48:47
still very in the recipe. This is beer. And we have we have

Unknown Speaker 48:53
asparagus on boys and berries and they had a little like a truck farm. They sold everything

Unknown Speaker 48:59
and or did you sell to

Unknown Speaker 49:03
come here?

Unknown Speaker 49:04
They're like, like vegetable. So they saw this?

Unknown Speaker 49:08
There was a dairy farmers market or not? The produce at the stores were really packed. Yeah, so mother and dad used to have regular customers.

Unknown Speaker 49:23
So you didn't in after the war you didn't ship like to Vancouver

Unknown Speaker 49:28
or just to Victoria. That's true strawberry. No very

Unknown Speaker 49:33
rosboroughs on the island, Fred? Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 49:41
Yeah, it's my, my, my soul. It's a very good 113 agriculture speak. To test all soil in the spring. They said that this is the best school really well. That's it. People want to buy my soil. They said, wouldn't you put your bag? You know? $2 ordinances there to them. I did a bag. I said, No, I don't want to serve soil. Yeah, no.

Unknown Speaker 50:19
Not the young better. But it used to come here because

Unknown Speaker 50:24
many times he come to my god with my husband. He's pleased

Unknown Speaker 50:31
to where he was really friendly. Nice to come here because he had a summer hormone designer. Mr. James, his daughter was married to I think a young so that's why he used to come. But

Unknown Speaker 50:54
the old man had been, you always come to see a knife.

Unknown Speaker 51:00
So actually, as I was telling you, there's a lot of prominent people wouldn't know the Mercer County so if they happen to be in Victoria, Vancouver, they always come to see mom. Really, they really do

Unknown Speaker 51:16
with people.

Unknown Speaker 51:20
They're very well, because they're not. No, it isn't. Because they're rich. They're nice mother. They're very nice people.

Unknown Speaker 51:28
I have a different America. I go, Oh,

Unknown Speaker 51:32
America goes Yes. They know.

Unknown Speaker 51:36
People from varying hands. You know, they come by boat. Oh, yeah. Always come up with you.

Unknown Speaker 51:45
When mother appeared on national television, or friends throughout Canada saw mother and they all wrote to her shoulder and said, Hey, TV, we saw you. You're famous. Did

Unknown Speaker 52:02
you soon that's the wrong way to go. Sick this church, like everybody does. Open House.

Unknown Speaker 52:16
Oh, lovely.

Unknown Speaker 52:21
Well, I just like to say thank you. Thank you for your time.

Unknown Speaker 52:38
There, okay, you know how much they're very badly. I have to come back. First of all, I think she did you find the price? I think she did. She said she was here yesterday. So what?

Unknown Speaker 52:54
What were you telling me about the tinge

Unknown Speaker 52:58
right now used to be highly, you know, he retired three, four years ago, and wife have all kinds of

Unknown Speaker 53:16
what do you call that?

Unknown Speaker 53:19
moles or freckles or

Unknown Speaker 53:21
go? No, no, not the fickle. Digital thing good. Yeah. Yeah, that's my Japanese family over there and doing tickets.

Unknown Speaker 53:37
Oh, really? On the bullet property there. Yeah. There's, I know that there were two or Well, there are about three or three old buildings there.

Unknown Speaker 53:47
But the road you can see. You can do? Yeah. Resting. So yeah.

Unknown Speaker 53:55
So you some of your family used to live there and work?

Unknown Speaker 53:59
No, no. family never rent a house or anything? Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 54:05
So what?

Unknown Speaker 54:09
That, you know, Mr. Barofsky, made? Yes, the five acre lake you really broke down all kinda trout and, and he had a nice, cheery interior on overdue. Yeah, they're still there. Still. Yeah. And he always wanted to come and get the, you know, so we always go within. And he had a nice chestnut tree.

Unknown Speaker 54:38
Great. Where

Unknown Speaker 54:41
Mr. Palmer used to be at work.

Unknown Speaker 54:45
Mr. Palmer? That's right. I know Irene Palmer.

Unknown Speaker 54:48
Yeah, but he doesn't know going his way. But the property, the chimney dig by descending when you go down And if they're inside oh yeah I heard that they know more to come to see you said she's in the green with about 80 or

Unknown Speaker 55:12
she is I went to see her last week because we live in the house where she used to live and I want to know do you don't know when that was built do I don't know but

Unknown Speaker 55:22
too bad a Mr. Broke his house burned down oh that was English though. You know I've seen photographs then. That lessness to city Devaney's oh all people in the men working their way big chestnut they bought the evening they bring me a bucket to chestnuts and that petition that my mother grant in that chapter she planted the 1923 Crazy no oh

Unknown Speaker 56:06
oh dear. I wonder why

Unknown Speaker 56:11
Gosh Kelly brown maple down did kind of creep in so we knew you know that Goose Bay can obey oh yeah

Unknown Speaker 56:31
okay

Unknown Speaker 56:33
she's telling me about Mr. Bullock we live on part of that property now family. That's right.

Unknown Speaker 56:39
The book isn't yours gentleman. He had that brand new for do you know he never did I just shake lucky

Unknown Speaker 56:53
I've heard I've heard people say how generous he was and how kind he was to people you

Unknown Speaker 56:58
know not only about the Japanese family you should have mother talk about other old timers position NGOs all these old people the old timers Yeah, like Mr. Bullock in different places people did you tell her you're the first woman to drive that model T Oh really? No. There was what year was it mother? I think it fit into industry on design and they didn't have that many good roads at

Unknown Speaker 57:31
that time. Most people have a wagon and buggy so I thought brand new three quarter ton the Ford Oh really? The night drive so fast anyway skip cannot see or hear me so can I drive fast?

Unknown Speaker 57:56
Dear? I heard that some of the people didn't like to have the cars when the cars first came to the island people thought that was a terrible thing.

Unknown Speaker 58:08
People from I think I forget the name he they used to do no oh yeah, they were sitting there they have a very nice car. That's how you and I bought that. I started drive in one of my meal delivery date is a heavy Indian. She said you could dread chi could certainly see bad the old or chi

Unknown Speaker 58:41
says was this Bob Aikman used to say no no

Unknown Speaker 58:50
no that's lovely.

Unknown Speaker 58:57
That's my baby breasts yeah

Unknown Speaker 59:07
this was so nice.

Unknown Speaker 59:09
Lady how you were fishermen and you know all the Reves where all the fish around this island? Yeah, well, you

Unknown Speaker 59:18
know, you didn't tell but you told me your parents fished around here and you used to go on the fishing boats. Did the whole family go?

Unknown Speaker 59:24
No, no. No. My point about that. I have a sick sister and small sister and brother. So I have to help you know father local school where myself I can speak the way they do great. So not too bad, too bad terms,

Unknown Speaker 59:58
right. That's why I'm here learning For me,

Unknown Speaker 1:00:01
I, I went to pens. So I know Do you have any so I could write people can t you're so nice.

Unknown Speaker 1:00:18
Oh really

Unknown Speaker 1:00:25
you know that I was telling you about the cemetery my mother's little brother that fell off the fishing boat and died. She's dead. Oh

Unknown Speaker 1:00:39
is a

Unknown Speaker 1:00:40
valuable mother but they wouldn't let her let her be buried here at that time. What year with a long time ago to see so she's and then I want to tell you something is has nothing to do with this island. Okay, but it has to do cemetery. The cemetery and Shimon is where all the Japanese were buried. It was bulldozed over, did you know that during the war, and everything was a built, gone, you know, you couldn't even find out where people were buried. And so happened that what other churches used that cemetery as a parking lot. They needed some gravel as a felon, and they found all these tombstones. Yeah. And so there was there's an investigation, you know, about that going on now? Yeah. They're going to try to put a monument up in one of my mother's your brother. Oh, my brother. My brother is was buried there. So they can find where his grave is because that's what they build those did. Not Can you imagine? Say for instance, with my save in my anger I