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Maui Nisei Vets Center Finally Being Completed
WAILUKU, Hawaii.—A long-awaited education center dedicated to celebrating the legacy of Japanese American World War II veterans will finally be built after more than two decades of planning and fundraising. Gov. Linda Lingle released a $750,000 grant Friday for construction of the 2,100-square-foot facility in Wailuku. “It is important that we continue to share in the pride that Nisei veterans have brought to the state and the nation by sharing their stories with future generations,” said Lingle. The money will be used to finish the Maui Nisei Veterans Memorial Center with a classroom, an extensive collection of books, veterans’ oral histories and photographs. It will be used as a resource for community members, historians and Maui school children. The children of Japanese immigrants to the United States, the Nisei, faced discrimination during the 1940s following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. The Nisei showed their patriotism by volunteering for the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. Total cost of the project is $1.3 million. In addition to state funds, the center has received $300,000 from Maui County and $250,000 in private donations. Construction is scheduled to begin in January 2008 and be completed in October 2008. The Nisei Veterans Memorial Center was incorporated in 1991 with the purpose of overseeing the acquisition of a site for the construction of a memorial in Hawaii to honor the Nisei Veterans. The 100th Infantry Battalion—which was comprised of members of the Hawaii National Guard’s 298th and 299th Infantry regiments—blazed the trail for all Nisei soldiers of World War II. Their success during basic and advanced training inspired President Roosevelt to announce the formation of the all-Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team with the famous words, “Americanism is not, and never was, a matter of race or ancestry.” The Nisei Veterans Memorial Center is recognized by the IRS as a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, visit www.nvmc.org |
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