Twice Orphaned

Twice Orphaned. Manzanar Children’s Village. , Here in an old pear orchard, 101 American-born children ranging from newborns to 18 year olds lived in the Children's Village, the only orphanage in any war relocation center. Living in three specially-built barracks and nurtured by a dedicated Japanese American staff and others, they became a unique wartime family. Nearly half had been brought from west coast institutions and foster homes. Others were temporarily separated from families when their parents were arrested or became ill or were infants born to unwed mothers. , , Children's Village was landscaped with lawns, flowers, and cherry trees. Japanese American staff built playground equipment and furniture and collected money for toys and other items, while some Owens Valley neighbors brought freshly-baked cookies and clothing. The children made friends through camp schools, churches, clubs, and sports and even formed their own baseball team. "But however much we encouraged our children to participate in the life of the larger community, we remained separate from it," recalled Lillian Matsumoto. , , "On June 23, 1942, we departed for Manzanar with 62 children... on the long trip we sang songs... A little four-year-old girl stood up and began to sing 'God Bless America.' At the front of the bus, the young soldier holding his rifle with the bayonet listened and I could see tears flowing down his cheek." , -Lillian Matsumoto, Children's Village Assistant Superintendent , , What Became of the Children? , After the war, many children were placed in institutions and foster homes, while others were reunited with their families. With blond hair and blue eyes, eight-year-old Dennis Tojo stood out as one of a number of children of mixed ancestry. Adopted in 1943 by the Bambauer family in Bishop, he was the only former Manzanar incarceree living in the Owens Valley after the war. Fifty years later, Dennis and dozens of others from the Children's Village gathered for an emotional reunion, renewing the ties they formed here.