Gender

Male

Birth date

1919-6-15

Place of birth

Los Altos CA, U.S.A.

Inducted

1944-6-24, Ft. Benj. Harrison IN

Enlistment type

Draftee

Service branch

Army

Service type

War

Unit type

Combat

Units served

442nd regiment, Cannon Company

Military specialty

Communication Chief 542

Stationed

USA - France - Italy

Separated

Camp Beale CA

Major battles (if served in a war zone)

Rhineland, France - Northern Appennines, Italy - Po Valley, Italy

Awards, medals, citations (individual or unit)

Expert MI Rifle - Combat Infantry Badge - WWII Victory Medal - European African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal - Good Conduct Medal - Distinguished Unit Badge with Oak Leaf Cluster

Living conditions

When we were in Camp we lived in nice tents and ate good food and when we were in combat we slept on the ground and ate mostly K-rations. In camp we had nice showers; in battle no time for a bath. Entertainment: Mostly Red Cross and USO shows

Most vivid memory of military experience

First time I was shot at.

Missed most whilst in the military

Being home and eating Japanese food.

Most important thing, personally, to come from military experience?

I got to see a lot of the outside world and see what it & other people were like.

Additional information

Photograph enclosed: Kaoru Takano is on the left. -Sunnyvale, CA. Minoru Harada is on the right. -Colusa, CA. Taken during the summer of 1945 when Cannon Co. was guarding POW's near Leghorn, Italy.