Photo By Sgt. Austan Owen | From left to right Tosh Okamoto, Bryant Takeuchi, Allen Nakamoto, Bob Nakamura and...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash.—Twelve years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks approximately 100 flag bearers marched onto Watkins Field at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., in solemn remembrance of those who died that day. Each organization raised their flags during a Massing of the Colors on Patriot Day not only to remember those that perished in the attack but also to pay tribute to all the veterans that have served protecting America.
During the ceremony, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl, deputy commanding general, I Corps said, “I can’t think of a more appropriate day than today to show our commitment to service in our nation.”
Dahl went on to add that the attack on Sept. 11, 2001, served to rekindle the embers of patriotism in America to a strong internal fire that may have dwindled over the previous decades.
The Nisei Patriot
A group of patriots at the ceremony answered a similar call to action 71 years earlier, overcoming racism and persecution to fight for their country.
Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941, more than 100,000 people of Japanese decent were forced to move to war relocation camps. The majority of those interned were American citizens.
Regardless of how the U.S. government treated them, many of the Nisei, or second generation Japanese Americans, were eager to prove their loyalty and fight for their country.
After pleas to the War Department and support from several generals, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team was formed. The initial request from the War Department was for 2,500 volunteers. The Nisei answered with more than 11,000 requesting to sign up.
The 442nd RCT went on to become the most decorated unit for its size in the U.S. Armed Forces, according to Edwin M. Nakasone, author of “The Nisei soldier.”
Patriot Day
Two veterans who fought with the 442nd RCT traveled from Seattle with the Nisei Veterans Committee to show their support during the ceremony. Both brimmed with pride in their service, their country and those that serve today.
One veteran who fought with the 442nd RCT during WWII, 87-year-old Tosh Okamoto, sat quietly watching the parade of colors as the flag bearers marched by. He later commented on the nostalgia he feels as he thinks about the trials he endured during his service, those that Soldiers face today and in the future.
Okamoto didn’t have to join the Army, especially after the way he had been treated by the government, but he felt compelled to do so. “It’s part of our culture that tells us to be loyal to your country,” he said.
After the ceremony, Okamoto spoke of how great America is—recalling that after the defeat of Japan and Italy the U.S. spent time and effort reconstructing those nations.
“We have a great country and when a country calls, it’s time for us to contribute; it’s our obligation to go. This is the greatest country in the world!”
A friend of Okamoto, retired 93-year-old Col. Jimmie Kanaya, commented on how great an opportunity it is to serve one’s country. Kanaya, who always wanted a career in the Army, fought with the 442nd in the Vosges Mountains in France during World War II. He was captured there by the Germans and spent six months as a prisoner of war.
Kanaya went on to fight in the Korea and Vietnam as well and retired after 34 years of service.
Kanaya and Okamoto’s service to their country didn’t end with the military, as members of the Nisei Veterans Committee they give presentations at schools, churches and civic organizations to educate others on the plight of the Nisei soldier. The NVC offers several scholarships and provides a community center and gymnasium in the International District of Seattle.
These were just two stories of commitment to the nation out of the many people and organizations that attended the ceremony.
When George W. Bush dedicated Sept. 11 as Patriot Day he said: “We will always remember our collective obligation to ensure that justice is done, that freedom prevails, and that the principles upon which our nation was founded endure.”
| Date Taken: | 09.11.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 09.16.2013 13:20 |
| Story ID: | 113705 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WASHINGTON, US |
| Hometown: | SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 81 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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