Listen here as island resident Lilly Kodama describes what it was like growing in the Fletcher Bay area in the 1940s and ’50s.

In this 21-minute podcast, excerpted from a two-hour interview with BIHM volunteer Tom Arnold, Lilly shares her memories of growing up on a farm at the head of Fletcher Bay, including her grandparent’s and parent’s journey to the island, life on the farm, and her mother’s work ethic in managing the farm before and after World War II while her father worked in Seattle. She also describes her family’s experience being forcibly removed from the island in March 1942 along with Bainbridge’s other Japanese American families, her family’s close relationship with Filipino immigrant Felix Narte, and the important leadership role her brother Frank played in bringing attention to the forced exclusion experience and in the establishing the Japanese American Exclusion Memorial in Eagledale.

LISTEN HERE

ABOUT THE BAINBRIDGE ISLAND HISTORICAL MUSEUM. Although the museum is currently closed to visitors, it has an Online Exhibit, “Fearless Music.” Its most recent exhibit is, “Her Vote. Her Story.” MISSION: Preserve and share the stories of Bainbridge Island to promote a greater understanding of our community and the world in which we live.