Hanumi (Jack) Kojimoto was a teenager in San Francisco when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Kojimoto’s family, like other Japanese-Americans, was interned in Utah for the duration of the war. Kojimoto went on to college after the war and was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to work in Japan and later in Hong Kong. He completed his career at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virg.

Kojiomoto shared a story with the La Cañada Kiwanis of the Japanese-Americans –  Nisei – who served honorably in World War II in the U.S. military in both Europe and the Pacific, mostly as linguists.

Due to fear of reprisals, their service was kept secret because many had parents and relatives in Japan. Nisei & Kibei Nisei are credited with helping to deceive the enemy, providing tactical information through captured documents and interrogation of prisoners. The collected information included enemy assault and defense plans.

Kojimoto is a member of the Glendale Kiwanis and several members of the Glendale Kiwanis Club attended the meeting.

Kojimoto is a resident of Glendale and, in addition to his participation in the Glendale Kiwanis, is an active member of the Italian Catholic Federation branch at St. Bede the Venerable Roman Catholic Church.

He regularly attends Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels where he has attended since his conversion to the Catholic faith when he was 83 years old.

  kiwanis