Ken Otagaki had no plans whatsoever to join the military. Leaving his family on a sugar cane plantation on Hawaii's Big Island and becoming what we would call an emancipated minor today, he worked his way though high school and the University of Hawaii and created a life he had always dreamed of. His draft notice and Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor put those plans on hold. Without warning, this Nisei found himself persona non grata in his own country and an infantry private in the 100th Infantry Battalion. His life changed again one cold night on a mountain top in Italy while he served as a stretcher bearer, but you'll have to listen to the podcast to find out exactly how.
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