"The smell of death … is something that stays with you for a lifetime." (Video Interview,

James Mitsuo Furukawa

James Mitsuo Furukawa at the Shuri Museum, Naha, Okinawa, Ryukyu Island [1946] War: World War II, 1939-1946 Branch: Army Unit: 34th Infantry Regiment, 24th Division Headquarters, Language Detachment, 441st Intelligence Corps Service Location: Hawaii; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Baltimore, Maryland; Pentagon; Korea; Japan Rank: Major Place of Birth: Wailuku, Maui, HI

Born in Hawaii to Japanese parents, and living on Oahu in December 1941, James Furukawa saw World War II up-close from the beginning. After being drafted into the Army in 1944, he was part of the invasion force on Okinawa, where he served a variety of roles, from acting as a translator to helping set up a military MASH unit. While he was not involved in active combat, he witnessed the bloodshed that was ever-present on the island; he was awarded a Bronze Star for rescuing patients from the military hospital where he was serving.