日系アメリカ人兵役体験記録データベース
Yoshio "Tad" Wakayama
性別
Male
生年月日
1916-1-11
出生地
San Jose CA, U.S.A.
入隊した年
1941-3-17, Ft. MacArthur CA
入隊のタイプ
Volunteer
所属・部署
Army
兵役のタイプ
War
所属部隊のタイプ
Combat
所属部隊
3rd Army
特殊技能
Office/medical
Ambulance driver
Auto mechanic
Ambulance driver
Auto mechanic
最終目標
USA: California, Washington, Missouri, Hawaii
Okinawa
Okinawa
除隊した年
Ft. Logan CO
所属部隊の役割
Guard island of Okinawa
所属部隊での個人的役割
Auto mechanic
主な戦闘（交戦地帯へ従軍した場合）
Battle of Okinawa
生活状況
Living conditions - lived in compound where guards stood watch so enemy couldn't come in. I was Sgt of Guards during the day and mechanic at night.
Slept in sleeping bags.
Don't recall how I bathed, perhaps a shower.
Meals were in a tent. Had some hot meals - spam, eggs, etc. Mostly rations. I hate spam - I have not eaten it since.
Entertainment - no such thing! War zone. No such luxury; just work, eat and sleep. Washed own clothes.
Working conditions: 155 mm shells were welded together to hold a tarp high enough to acccomodate 2 trucks. It provided protection from weather and allowed us to work on trucks for the next day's use. We had thirty teams of two people to work on trucks at night - 60 mechanics.
Slept in sleeping bags.
Don't recall how I bathed, perhaps a shower.
Meals were in a tent. Had some hot meals - spam, eggs, etc. Mostly rations. I hate spam - I have not eaten it since.
Entertainment - no such thing! War zone. No such luxury; just work, eat and sleep. Washed own clothes.
Working conditions: 155 mm shells were welded together to hold a tarp high enough to acccomodate 2 trucks. It provided protection from weather and allowed us to work on trucks for the next day's use. We had thirty teams of two people to work on trucks at night - 60 mechanics.
軍隊生活で最も記憶に残っている出来事
On Sunday - walking around island about 5 - 6 Japanese Army men were out from the caves - just sleeping in the sun out in the open - no guards. But we never shot them.
Civilian women walking - when they see our jeep - they would jump into the tall weeds on the side of the road to hide. Nearby was the Okinawa Hospital where the women worked.
Only one building was standing in the capital city. Everything was knocked down or bombed out. I saw a woman looking for and digging up sweet potatoes. We saw two women who worked at the hospital where we stayed 3 - 4 months and they did our laundry for us. We were in Okinawa almost a year in 1945.
Jeep drivers takes enlisted men, officers to whatever destination. The Japanese soldiers would catch the officers by the neck with a wire and kill them.
Civilian women walking - when they see our jeep - they would jump into the tall weeds on the side of the road to hide. Nearby was the Okinawa Hospital where the women worked.
Only one building was standing in the capital city. Everything was knocked down or bombed out. I saw a woman looking for and digging up sweet potatoes. We saw two women who worked at the hospital where we stayed 3 - 4 months and they did our laundry for us. We were in Okinawa almost a year in 1945.
Jeep drivers takes enlisted men, officers to whatever destination. The Japanese soldiers would catch the officers by the neck with a wire and kill them.
軍隊にいる間、最も懐かしかったもの
Good food.
個人的に軍隊経験から学んだ最も重要なこと
Since I knew mechanics work before I volunteered, the Army experience did not help me after discharge. Ben and I assembled 2-wheeled trailers in the hot sun and just had a lot of hard work tune-ups, etc. As trucks were being used during the day, we worked 3-4-5 hours at night to get trucks ready for next day's work.
Stay out of the Army!
Stay out of the Army!
その他の情報
I worked as a mechanic, after discharge, but skilled labor wages were not good so I ended up working for a beer distributor. Union wages were good. Joined the Teamsters Union and retired with a pension.
