The Nisei Veterans Legacy (NVL) hosted ten high school students from the Tohoku region in Japan on Saturday, March 24, 2018 at the 100th Infantry Battalion clubhouse. The students are all orphans from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster and are referred to as the Rainbow Kids.
Each year since the disaster, several children are brought to Hawaii for a week of educational and cultural experiences by the Over the Rainbow Foundation which is headquartered in Tokyo. They are hosted in Hawaii each year by the Hawaii Senior Life Enrichment Association (HISLEA).
The NVL has been partnering with the HISLEA for two years to help to educate their members and visitors from Japan on the Japanese American history of Hawaii with an emphasis on the Nisei soldiers. HISLEA has sponsored NVL exhibits at the Honolulu Festival during this period. They have also supported the Hawaii Nikkei Legacy Exhibit tour in Japan.
The students received presentations about the history of Japanese immigration to Hawaii and the Nisei soldiers of World War II. Presenters included Lloyd Kitaoka (100th IB), Lynn Heirakuji (442nd RCT), Larry Enomoto (MIS) and Byrnes Yamashita (NVL).
After the presentations, they were provided a tour of the historic 100th Infantry Battalion clubhouse.