Pastor's Reflection 2023-06-15

Dear Wesley UMC Family,

I was honored to participate in the Oak Hill Cemetery Memorial Day Service on May 29.
As we gathered at the Oak Hill Cemetery on Memorial Day, I was reminded of the brave men and women who had laid down their lives in service to our nation. Their selflessness and sacrifice embody the very essence of love, echoing the words of Jesus when He said, 'Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends' (John 15:13).
I remembered my Uncle Toll who was my Mom’s older brother. Uncle Toll was born on February 1, 1923, in Seattle Washington. In 1944, at the age of 21, my Uncle Toll and my Uncle Ben enlisted in the U.S. Army.

After doing basic training at Camp Shelby (Mississippi) and Camp Blanding (Florida), Uncle Toll was assigned to the famous 442nd Regimental Combat Team, an all-Japanese unit that was the most highly decorated American military unit of the war.  As a member of the 442nd's he participated in the “Rescue of the Lost Battalion” in the Vosges Mountains of France in October 1944. The Lost Battalion, were 211 men from the 1st Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment. They had been cut off and were surrounded by German forces. The 442nd Regiment were ordered to go in and rescue the Lost Battalion. The battle was a fierce and intense. According to some stories, my Uncle Toll single-handedly destroyed an enemy machine gun nest, allowing his unit to advance. The 442nd fought their way through enemy lines and difficult terrain to reach the trapped Lost Battalion and successfully rescued them. Their heroics was a critical and celebrated operation. The bravery displayed by all of the soldiers of the 442nd was remarkable.
It is estimated that the 442nd had around 800 casualties during the operation. These casualties included soldiers killed, wounded, or missing in action. Unfortunately, my Uncle Toll was killed in action on October 29, 1944, during the rescue of those 211 men. I am saddened that I never was able to meet Uncle Toll. My Mom said he was a jovial person, someone whom she looked up to. And there is another part of me that is angry because he and my other Uncle felt compelled to volunteer for the Army to prove their loyalty to this country while their entire family were being illegally imprisoned at the Heart Mountain Wyoming Internment Camp by the same US Government. The Internment Camp experience was a difficult time for the Japanese American Community.
Memorial Day also gave me pause to reflect on the fragility of life and the brevity of our time here on Earth. It was as a reminder that we all must try to live our lives purposefully and to make a positive impact in the lives of others, just as those who have gone before us have done.

Peace of Christ!
Rev. John Oda