Uncle Hiroshi

28 May 2011 - A Day in the Life, a photo by Wayne-K on Flickr.

I started this blog in January 2010 and the very first of my relatives to be featured was Auntie Pearl. I'm not one hundred percent sure, but I don't think I've featured another relative since.

Well, I'm writing here to honor Uncle Hiroshi, who's funeral was on 28 May 2011. Governor Neil Abercrombie ordered all Hawai’i flags at State offices be be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Saturday, May 28, 2011.

Hiroshi Kato was a "nisei" (second generation Japanese-American) and served with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II. After the war, he earned a degree from the University of Hawaii-Manoa and used the GI Bill to go to law school at the University of Minnesota. He was first elected to the State House of Representatives in 1959 and served for seven terms. He retired from the State Legislature in 1974 and was appointed by Governor John Burns to the Circuit Court bench where he served as judge for eight years. More about his life in this newspaper article.

I never knew he was a member of the 442nd RCT. He was very soft-spoken and never talked about it. The unit became the most highly decorated regiment in the history of the United States armed forces.

Now for the rest of the relatives, I hope I'm not writing about you any time soon!