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Contact: Diane Tanaka
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“HONORING OUR HEROES” GATHERS
VETERANS TO COMMEMORATE GO FOR BROKE MONUMENT 5TH ANNIVERSARY
SATURDAY JUNE 5
Free, Public Event To Feature Retired
Army General David A. Bramlett And Medal Of Honor Recipient George
Sakato
TORRANCE, Calif. (May 25, 2004) - With all of
the pomp and circumstance surrounding the Memorial Day festivities
in Washington D.C., many locals should realize that Los Angeles’
Little Tokyo has a World War II monument of its own. On Saturday,
June 5 at 10 a.m. in remembrance of the heroics and patriotism
of the Japanese American soldiers from World War II, the Go For
Broke Educational Foundation will host “Honoring Our Heroes,”
the 5th anniversary tribute to the Go For Broke Monument. The
public is encouraged to attend this free tribute that will include
an array of special guests. The Go For Broke Monument is located
at Temple and Alameda streets in downtown Los Angeles’ Little
Tokyo district.
“The Go For Broke Monument was dedicated five years ago
but the organization has been working to preserve the American
story of the Nisei veterans’ sacrifices for 15 years and
is a significant milestone that marks our many successes,”
said Christine Sato-Yamazaki, executive director and president.
“‘Honoring Our Heroes’ offers a chance for the
WWII veterans, their families and friends to gather and pay tribute
to the Go For Broke Monument, which honors the service of the
Nisei WWII veterans and also serves as a reminder of the civil
liberties the U.S. Constitution guarantees all its citizens regardless
of race.”
The Go For Broke Monument is a 40-feet-wide, nine-feet-high gleaming
granite sphere engraved with the names of the 16,126 Japanese
American soldiers from the segregated units: the 100th Infantry
Division, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Military Intelligence
Service, 522nd Field Artillery Battalion, 1399th Engineer Construction
Battalion, and 232nd Combat Engineer Company, their officers and
Nisei women who served in the U.S. Military during World War II.
This year’s tribute will focus on the U.S. Army’s
highest honor, the Medal of Honor. Hailing from Denver, Medal
of Honor recipient George Sakato, a 442nd veteran, will address
the crowd and provide insight from his extreme act of heroism
and bravery that led to the awarding of this distinguished medal.
Sakato is one of 20 Japanese American WWII veterans whose decoration
was upgraded to Medal of Honor in June 2000.
This year’s keynote speaker is retired Army General David
A. Bramlett. Bramlett, who resides in Honolulu, is a decorated
veteran with and an extensive list of command and staff positions
during his more than 32 years of active commissioned service.
Moreover, the Educational Foundation’s 2004 Go For Broke
Award recipient is Los Angeles City Councilmember Jan Perry. She
spent many years helping the veterans build the Go For Broke Monument
as Chief-of-Staff to Rita Walters and currently in her position
as Councilmember for Los Angeles’ 9th District. She will
be presented the award at the anniversary event.
Representing today’s young generation of Americans who
seek to understand the Nisei WWII veteran story is 14-year-old
Tracy Empson of Lake Elsinore, Calif. She is the 2003 National
History Day first place award winner for her self-produced documentary,
“Decision of Conscience,” which garnered her the U.S.
Department of Education’s top history prize. Her film featured
some of the Nisei WWII veteran docents of the Go For Broke Monument.
For more information, please contact the Go For Broke Educational
Foundation at 310-328-0907 or email at esoldier@goforbroke.org.
The Go For Broke Educational Foundation institutes educational
programs focused on the heroism and history of the Japanese American
soldiers of World War II, as well as the forced evacuation and
incarceration of Japanese Americans and civil liberties issues
raised by those events. Currently the Educational Foundation’s
programs include An American Story Teacher Training Program, Hanashi
Oral History Program, www.GoForBroke.org
educational Web site, and Resource Center.
