[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 57 (Tuesday, April 10, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E428]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            HONORING THE 100TH BIRTHDAY OF MR. ROY FUJIWARA

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. COLLEEN HANABUSA

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 10, 2018

  Ms. HANABUSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Roy Fujiwara, a 
Honolulu resident, decorated World War II veteran, and loyal American 
citizen.
  Mr. Fujiwara was born February 15, 1918, in Seattle, Washington. He 
enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 17, 1941, soon after Pearl Harbor. 
He was a patriot prepared to die for his country, telling his family he 
``was going, but not coming back.''
  While he served the United States, his family was removed from their 
homes and sent to the Puyallup Relocation Center. The family was later 
separated and sent to internment camps that held Japanese-Americans 
throughout the war.
  Mr. Fujiwara joined the Army's segregated 442nd Regimental Combat 
Team, a unit that would go on to become the most decorated in the 
history of the United States Armed Forces. In 1945, the 442nd was 
ordered to attack Mt. Folgorito in Italy. From its heights on the 
western terminus of the Gothic Line, the enemy could block American 
operations all the way to the coast and for several miles out to sea. 
The mountain had to be taken for the Allies to advance.
  The 442nd made a surprise attack that required a stealthy eight-hour 
climb up the mountain in complete darkness. Italian partisans led the 
way, and Mr. Fujiwara climbed carrying the heavy Browning Automatic 
Rifle, or B.A.R. He remembers the battle at the summit that nearly cost 
his life: ``The Germans looked for us B.A.R. men because we had the 
firepower. My buddy got shot, and I could hear him yell, `Roy! I'm 
hit!' I stuck up my head and the sniper knew exactly where I was . . . 
Pow!''
  The sniper's bullet hit Mr. Fujiwara next to his right eye and exited 
his neck, which still today bears a six-inch scar. Not yet spent, the 
same bullet shattered his right shoulder. His fellow soldiers carried 
him down the mountain, and he spent 30 days in the hospital with his 
arm in a cast and his jaw wired shut. Months of rehabilitation were to 
follow. The 442nd took the mountain, broke the Gothic Line, and the 
Allies continued to push the enemy out of Italy. Mr. Fujiwara's two 
brothers also served in the U.S. Army.
  After the war, he returned to find the Seattle Japanese-American 
community trying to pick up the pieces of its pre-Internment existence. 
He applied for work at Fredric and Nelson, which he calls the ``biggest 
and nicest department store in Seattle at that time'' and worked there 
32 years. The store had not hired Japanese Americans until Mr. Fujiwara 
broke the color barrier. He met and married Sei Kanogawa, who passed 
away in 2012, and has one son, Tod Fujiwara, who lives in Honolulu.
  442nd Regimental Combat Team veterans, including Mr. Fujiwara, were 
awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol 
in November 2011. Mr. Fujiwara also earned the Purple Heart, Bronze 
Star, and Combat Infantryman's Badge for his service.
  Mr. Fujiwara turned 100 years old on February 15, 2018, celebrating 
with his family and friends in Honolulu. He remains a patriotic 
American and an American hero for serving his country and enduring the 
wounds his service brought. He has led a productive life, has a great 
sense of humor, and always conducts himself with dignity, in spite of 
the many challenges he has faced. He is a treasure to his native state 
of Washington, his new home state of Hawaii, and the United States of 
America. I extend my sincerest birthday wishes to Roy Fujiwara and wish 
him many more healthy and happy years.

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