The story of Japanese and American-born students of Japanese ancestry, who were unable to complete their education at Anaheim Union High School due to their forced relocation to WWII incarceration camps, will be remembered as part of Aug. 24 admission-free event at Cook Auditorium.
Anaheim High graduates organizing “The Poston Experience – Paving the Way for the Next Generations” say this unique program will illustrate how the stories of minority students from 75 years ago are strikingly similar to experiences faced by many of today’s generation.
The 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. program will offer a rare opportunity to hear special guest speaker Gania Demaree-Trotter, a 1944 graduate whose father, Dr. Paul H. Demaree, was principal of Anaheim Union High School from 1941 to 1954.
Cook Auditorium was a second home for Gania, who was a performing arts student and, later, a music teacher at her alma mater. Her return to the Cook stage is an occasion being celebrated and embraced by Anaheim High alumni, especially her students from the 1950s.
To preserve the legacy of these Japanese and Japanese-American students, the majority of whom were sent to Poston, Arizona, this two-hour program will feature Orange County leaders who went to Poston during WWII, as well as a special presentation about an Anaheim pioneer family represented by AHS Class of 1962 graduate Marlene Shigekawa. Marlene will talk about her family and her work in preserving the legacy of the Poston, Arizona camp where she was born.
Other panelists include Don Miyada, Robert M. Wada, and Tom Leatherman, who is representing the National Park Service Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant Program.
This unknown chapter has never been featured in a major educational event until now, according to Patti Hirahara, a Class of ’73 AHS grad who is the event coordinator and moderator.
To heighten the learning experience, recordings of songs from the Poston era and popular tunes from the 1940s will provide a musical backdrop for the event. Performers include Anaheim Elementary School District children and the Anaheim High Las Sirenas Advanced Women’s Choir.
In addition, a new and original 10 minute documentary produced by the Anaheim Union High School District Summer Film Academy students entitled, “Remember Us: An Historic Chapter at Anaheim High School, will make its debut at “The Poston Experience” program.
For a nominal fee, persons who attend the August 24th morning program will be given an opportunity to be part of a sneak preview of the City of Anaheim’s new original exhibition – “I Am An American – Japanese Incarceration in a Time of Fear,” which will run from Aug. 25 through Nov. 3 at the Muzeo Museum & Cultural Center.
For further information e-mail: anaheimalumni@yahoo.com or phone: (714) 392-2103. The event can also be found on Facebook @AZPostonAHS.
