A series of stories anchored on Japanese-American relocation and incarceration during World War II.

The Legacy of the Lost Battalion

Jeff Hunt, Director of the Texas Military Forces Museum at Camp Mabry, recounts how soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment—mostly Texans—became trapped by Nazi forces deep in the Vosges forest. Cut off from supplies and reinforcements, they faced freezing conditions and constant attacks as hope began to dwindle.

Rescue of the Lost Battalion

Jeff Hunt continues the story with the dramatic rescue mission led by Nisei soldiers of the 100th/442nd RCT. Despite facing discrimination and having family members held in internment camps, these Japanese American troops fought through treacherous terrain and overwhelming odds to save the Texans—an act of valor that cost hundreds of lives.

Shirlee Blonder

Shirlee Blonder, widow of Erwin Blonder—one of the rescued radio operators—shares the powerful memories her husband carried from that harrowing time. Through her words, we glimpse the emotional weight of survival, and the deep gratitude Erwin felt toward the Nisei soldiers who risked everything to bring him home.

Yakamashi Redress

The fight for redress was decades in the making—a national campaign for justice that demanded an apology and compensation for the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans. This story reveals how grassroots activism, political strategy, and personal testimony came together to right a historic wrong.

Toshi Ito

At 17, Toshi Ito was incarcerated at Heart Mountain with her family—an experience that ended in heartbreak when her father, stripped of dignity and livelihood, took his own life. Her story is a powerful reminder of the long, often unseen cost of injustice.

Chicken’s Story

Known for his battlefield heroism in the 100th Infantry Battalion, Lt. Miyashiro also showed unexpected compassion to enemy soldiers. As a wounded POW, that compassion was returned—saving his life in a German camp. His granddaughter Lindsay Horikoshi shares his remarkable story of courage and humanity.

Okubo on Banzai Hill

In this powerful video, we accompany Bill and Anne Okubo to the forested hillside in France where their father, Army medic James K. Okubo, risked his life under relentless enemy fire to save dozens of wounded soldiers during World War II—acts that would later earn him the Medal of Honor. Standing on Banzai Hill,

A Canteen Discovery

While participating in a pilgrimage in France, Bill and Anne Okubo visit a museum in Bruyeres where rumors of a canteen ring true. Etched in the side: "James OKubo", the name of their father, who survived the war, but passed in 1967 in a tragic car accident.

A Ring is Found

While exploring the woods near his village in France, Sebastien Roure uncovers a mysterious ring buried in the earth—an object that hints at a forgotten story from the past.

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