The French, Nisei connection
Apr. 8—The gratitude and aloha that grew between citizens of Bruyeres, France, and the veterans of the legendary 442nd Regimental Combat Team is still going strong 80 years after the Hawaii-born soldiers valiantly liberated the small town from years of German occupation in World War II.
The gratitude and aloha that grew between citizens of Bruyeres, France, and the veterans of the legendary 442nd Regimental Combat Team is still going strong 80 years after the Hawaii-born soldiers valiantly liberated the small town from years of German occupation in World War II.
Thirty-one high school students from Bruyeres are in Honolulu until Thursday to learn more about the patriotism of the Nisei (second-generation Japanese ) army unit through tours of historic sites, largely with the help of descendants of the soldiers who have been personally touched by the connection between the sister cities.
"They're going to have a trip to Hawaii they'll probably remember the rest of their lives, " promised Byrnes Yamashita, whose father was a member of the 442nd, the most decorated unit in American history.
He and friends Geralyn Holck, Mae Isonaga and Kika Matsumoto stepped up only five weeks ago to arrange 11 days of educational and cultural activities, along with days at the beach. Visits to Pearl Harbor, the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, Iolani Palace and the mayor's office are among a host of locations on the itinerary.
Yamashita said Holck's late father-in-law, the former City Councilman Wilbert "Sandy " Holck, a member of the 442nd, was instrumental in arranging the sister-city relationship in 1961 to keep alive the powerful ties born from the liberation of the French town at the cost of many Nisei lives.
Yamashita, who is also president of the Nisei Veterans Legacy group, said the soldiers were intent on proving their courage and loyalty to America when their allegiance was called into question after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The group from the Institution Jeanne D'Arc spent a half day on Thursday making friends with other high schoolers at Le Jardin Academy in Kailua, which has been its sister school since 2011.
Isabelle Pualoa, a French teacher at Le Jardin, was asked by the teacher at Jeanne D'Arc, a Catholic vocational school, to help coordinate the group's accommodations, she said. The students (24 boys and 7 girls ), accompanied by five teachers, raised funds for their trip but had little idea of how much everything cost in Hawaii.
To help, Pualoa got the Nisei groups involved with planning activities and garnering support throughout the community for their visit, she said. Le Jardin, which is nondenominational, is contributing to their meals, and the Saint Stephen Diocesan Center in Kaneohe has allowed the students to stay in the Catholic facility's dorms. The students also received a $5, 000 grant from the Augustine Educational Foundation in Kailua, which traditionally provides tuition assistance for Catholic school students.
Sophie Goeury, the English teacher of the small Institution Jeanne D'Arc, said most of her students are not fluent in English, telling her, "Madame, I can understand but I don't know how to respond, how to make my sentences." But some have already exchanged phone numbers with those they've met at Le Jardin, and she's heard them responding in English while Le Jardin's French students practice the Gallic language, "which is good for them."
Goeury translated for two of her 18-year-old students, Thomas Toussaint and Aurelien Arnould. Toussaint, who wants to join the air force, said he was most impressed by the lush landscape of Hawaii, Pearl Harbor and all the history he's learned about Bruyeres' connection to Honolulu. Arnould, who plans to be a firefighter, remarked on the weather and the welcoming people—"the people are always open and happy."
Although they have attended annual war memorial ceremonies for Bruyeres, Goeury's students came to Hawaii only knowing the basics surrounding Pearl Harbor and the Nisei role in freeing their town. They did not know about the soldiers' bravery in the face of racism, she said.
She is hoping her students "can understand the history and all the sacrifices that were made, and that World War II was not just about France, but a lot of countries."
Yamashita and his friends were eager to help show the French students a good time because of the outpouring of affection they received from Bruyeres residents during a 2013 trip to Vosges with a large group of Nisei descendants. Yamashita particularly remembers the visit to the Jeanne D'Arc school and the welcoming ceremony.
"The third graders stood up and sang Hawaii Pono 'i, and we all got chicken skin, that 70 years after the war they're teaching 8-year-olds about Nisei soldiers from Hawaii. This was almost like a life-changing experience for many of us, " including his two sons, Yamashita said. "We were all so touched and moved. We went there to show aloha and they out-aloha-ed us."
Yamashita said other donations to fund the student activities have come from individuals and groups such as the Sons &Daughters of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team ; the Club 100, which honors Nisei veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion (and which the students will visit ); and the Nisei Veterans Legacy.
