Thank you for your support!

Last December Placer County completed the first phase of a memorial to World War II American soldiers of Japanese ancestry. The County named “Go For Broke” Road in their honor and dedicated a magnificent site at the Bill Santucci Placer County Justice Center in Roseville, California.

Now JACL chapters in Sacramento, Florin and Placer County are fundraising to complete the second phase, constructing a larger than life bronze statue commemorating the “Rescue of the Lost Battalion” designed by artist France Borka, showing a soldier of the 442nd helping a wounded soldier from the 36th Texas Battalion off the battlefield. We also plan to provide an educational component exploring the significance that period in our history.

See Placer County WW II Roster

               Our Progress to date:

Over $75,000 in donations

Thanks to Our Generous Contributors

You Can Win a Bronze Scale Model (Maquette) of the Monument!

Drawing to be held May 2011

Tickets

Single $10.00 Buy 6 $50.00 Buy 12 $100.00

Recent articles:

Auburn Journal - Gold and Bronze Tributes to Honor Area Japanese-American World War II Veterans

Pacific Citizen - Film Boosts ‘Lost Battalion’ Memorial Project

Nikkei West - Film Premiere Brings Fundraising Boost to JACL Project

Pacific Citizen - Placer County JACL to Hold Fundraiser:  Proceeds will go toward the building of a Nisei veterans memorial

Auburn Journal - Japanese American Soldier Statue Drive Battling Price Hike for Bronze

Auburn Journal - Editorical Cartoon

Auburn Journal - Tokutomi: "Let’s Memorialize Contributions of Japanese Americans"

Memorial to 442nd Dedicated in Placer County

Click here for more dedication photos and articles

See Placer County WW II Roster

Shown from left are Placer County Board of Supervisors members Jim Holmes, Kirk Uhler, Robert Weygandt, Jennifer Montgomery, and Board Chairman F. C. “Rocky” Rockholm, and 442nd veterans Frank Kageta, Shig Yokote, Al Nitta (seated), Norman Kamada; all from Placer County. To their right are two 442nd veterans from Sacramento who served also as part of the Nisei color guard at the dedication of the Placer County Memorial to the 442nd on December 16, 2009.

Roseville, CA – A memorial to the soldiers of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team was dedicated on December 16, 2009, as a tribute to the bravery, patriotism and dedication of local Japanese American residents who served in one of the U.S. Army’s most-decorated units during World War II.

The ceremony honored county residents who served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and veterans Frank Kageta, Shig Yokote, Al Nitta, and Norman Kamada were among the dignitaries present at the dedication. The memorial is located on Justice Center Drive near the Placer County Superior Court building. Placer County also has named a roadway at the Santucci Center “Go for Broke Road” to commemorate the unit’s motto.

“While the story of the 442nd began with its share of injustice and discrimination in the end it became a story of patience and fortitude, of unparalleled sacrifice, and of forgiveness. And ultimately it is a testimony to the resilience of the human spirit,” said Placer County Supervisor Jim Holmes.

Holmes recognized Howard Nakae as an example of Nisei soldiers who returned to the area after the war to rebuild their lives.

“Begin anew they did, without showing signs of malice or resentment, they opened shops, worked on ranches, began landscaping businesses and nurseries, they became leaders in agriculture, business, education, government, and yes, even law enforcement,” said Holmes.

For the first phase of the memorial, Placer County created a 36-foot wide concrete compass and framed an open space to the south with two large granite boulders that represent the struggles soldiers endured coming out of the Vosges Mountains in France. One boulder has an inlaid bronze plaque with a dedication message from the Board of Supervisors, and the other boulder has a bronze plaque that describes the history of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

“Placer County and the Placer County Japanese American Citizens League want to make sure the public never forgets the patriotism and dedication of the more than 100 soldiers from our county who served in the 442nd,” said Chairman F.C. “Rocky” Rockholm of the Board of Supervisors.

“The unit’s battlefield successes and dedication to our country are one of the most remarkable, heart-warming stories of World War II. The memorial will help ensure that the story of the 442nd and its soldiers will endure.”

In phase two, the Placer County, Sacramento and Florin chapters of the Japanese American Citizens League plan to add a larger than life size bronze monument, designed by France Borka, depicting a Japanese American soldier of the 100th Battalion/442nd RCT helping rescue a wounded soldier of the 36th Texas Division, who were trapped by Nazi troops for days and became known as the “Lost Battalion. Placer County also plans to include inscribed names of every Placer County resident who served in the unit.

This permanent monument to these heroes will be funded entirely through donations.

By creating this monument we honor all those who served from Northern California in the 442nd RCT/ 100th Battalion and the Military Intelligence Service. Our goal is to raise $150,000 to complete the memorial and develop educational materials.

A group of individuals and businesses has generated over $75,000 so far in our fundraising effort. Organizations committed to this project include the Placer Buddhist Church, the JACL Northern California/Western Nevada/Pacific (NCWNP) District, Nisei Post 8985 VFW in Sacramento, the Japanese American Veterans Association (JAVA), and the Go for Broke National Education Center in Torrance.

Please help us erect this memorial to the heroic Japanese Americans who sacrificed so much in World War II. Your contribution to Placer County JACL is tax-deductible.

Donate online (button above, at right), or make checks payable to Placer JACL and mail to:

Thank you for your support!

Join Facebook Group: Honor Japanese American WW II Heroes with a Memorial

Listen: NPR story broadcast Veterans Day 2009 from PRI's "The World"

View: photos of the interview participants

Read: A Nisei World War II Veteran’s Journey Into History

News: Congress Authorizes construction funds for "Go For Broke" National Education Center

Watch: Video from KABC (Los Angeles) - The 442nd Regimental Combat Team's famous rescue of the lost Texas battalion in France during World War II

Related News:

JACL Honors Japanese American Veterans

The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) paid tribute to the Japanese American veterans who served in the armed forces during World War II and the Korean War.

In the organization’s 3rd Annual Gala Awards Dinner held September 15 in Washington D.C., the JACL bestowed their appreciation to veterans of all conflicts and persons who are currently serving in the military, and particularly veterans of the 100th Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat Team, the Military Intelligence Service (MIS), and others who served in regular units during World War II, and veterans of the Korean War.