Torao Okamoto
Go For Broke National Education Center
UCLA, Naomi Suzuki
www.goforbroke.org

“Torao Okamoto was born on January 22nd, 1914, in Seattle, Washington to his father Vichiso Okamoto, his mother Sodo Yamamoto, his sister Misao Kato, and his brother Sakato Okamoto. Before his time of service, he had attended high school within the area of Los Angeles, California and had served as a class vice president. After completing high school, Torao became a fisherman in Collensville, California and started working on a fishing boat. Shortly after, Torao returned to Los Angeles and enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 30th, 1941.” He was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army on November 24th, 1945, in Fort Dix, New Jersey, after which he returned to Los Angeles. “Torao Okamoto passed away on October 16th, 1985, at the age of 71 in his residence in Santa Monica, California and was interred on October 28th, 1945, at the Los Angeles National Cemetery in West Los Angeles alongside his friends and fellow soldiers. Torao and his family were most likely of Protestant or Christian religious faith, as a Latin cross was requested as the religious emblem for Torao’s headstone.”

Military Service:
During his military career, Torao was assigned to Company D of the 100th Battalion, one of three primary Japanese American units in the U.S. military during World War II. The unit was known as “The Purple Heart Battalion” for its high casualty rate and unwavering bravery or “The One-Puka-Puka” a nickname given by the large majority of Hawaiians in the unit. (In Hawaiian puka means “hole” and also zero in a telephone number). After joining the army, Torao spent months training at Camp Shelby in Mississippi before being sent with his unit in August 1943 North Africa where they were to guard prisoners of war. However, enraged that his men weren’t being sent to the front lines, Colonel Turner demanded the Army send the 100th to Italy. So, in September 1943, Minoru and the rest of his unit made their way to the European theater. There, he rose to the military rank of “Corporal” and fought in some of the most grueling campaigns in Europe, including the Salerno landings and the breakthrough at Anzio. One of the battalion’s most heroic efforts came in October 1944, when it helped rescue the “Lost Battalion” of the Texas National Guard trapped behind enemy lines in the Vosges Mountains. Despite entrenched German resistance, rugged terrain, and harsh conditions, the 100th along with the 442nd pushed forward with relentless determination, suffering approximately 150 casualties and 1800 wounded. They were able to save 211 Texans who remained of the 275 who had been surrounded earning the unit a Presidential Unit Citation for their actions. Throughout his time serving, Torao served as a “Squadron Leader and was awarded a Europe, Africa, and Middle Eastern Service Medal, an American Defense Service Medal, a Good Conduct Medal, a World War II Victory Medal, as well as the Bronze Star, Combat Infantryman Badge, Distinguished Unit Badge, and a Purple Heart for his performance in the line of duty.

Legacy:
Torao was one of thousands of Japanese Americans who risked their lives in the war despite the prejudice and discrimination they faced because of it. For many soldiers, while they were serving in the army, their families were being wrongfully kept in incarceration camps across the U.S. The Nisei soldiers faced more than just the battlefield, and they fought for not only American democracy, but against the racism they and their families faced everyday in America. In a nation that questioned their loyalty and denied them basic civil rights, the Japanese Americans like Torao took it upon themselves to prove their patriotism and steadfast beliefs in the ideals of freedom and equality. Because of the efforts and sacrifices of soldiers like him, the 100th Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat Team remains one of the most decorated American military units for its size and length of service. The courage, loyalty, and sacrifice of the Nisei soldiers helped reshape the nation’s views on Japanese Americans and stands as a testament to the significance of recognizing Asian American contributions to U.S. history.

As racism and anti-Asian sentiment remain prevalent in America today, we must preserve the legacy created by heroes like Torao. By remembering the stories of the Japanese Americans who embodied the “Go For Broke” spirit, risking everything so future generations could be proud Americans, we help ensure that these injustices are never repeated against any community.

This biography was researched and written by students as part of the Digital Veterans Legacy Project at Go For Broke National Education Center and Loyola Marymount University, funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Cemetery Administration.

Sources
100th Infantry Battalion Veterans. (n.d.). Members of the 100th [PDF]. Retrieved July
2025, from https://www.100thbattalion.org/wp-content/uploads/Members-of-the-100th.pdf 100thbattalion.org
Grubb, A. S. (2024, August 30). Rescue of the Lost Battalion. In Densho Encyclopedia.
https://encyclopedia.densho.org/Rescue_of_the_Lost_Battalion/ Densho Encyclopedia
Duus, M. U. (2006). Unlikely liberators: The men of the 100th and 442nd (P. Duus,
Trans.). University of Hawaiʻi Press. (Original work published 1987)

Torao Okamoto was born on January 22nd, 1914 in Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. to his father Vichiso Okamoto, his mother Sodo Yamamoto, his sister Misao Kato, and his brother Sakato Okamoto. Before his time of service, he had attended high school within the area of Los Angeles, California. In high school, Torao served as a class vice president. After completing high school, Torao became a fisherman in Collensville, California and started working on a fishing boat.  

Shortly after, Torao returned to Los Angeles and enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 30th, 1941. Throughout his military career, Torao rose to the military rank of “Corporal” and was a part of the combat infantry unit known as the “442nd Infantry Unit”, which was solely a Japanese-American combat infantry unit within the U.S. Army. Torao served as a “Squadron Leader” within the 442nd Infantry Unit and was deployed in North Apennines, Italy and Rhineland, Germany. Torao Okamoto was awarded by the U.S. Army with a Europe, Africa, and Middle Eastern Service Medal, an American Defense Service Medal, a Distinguished Unit Service Badge, a Good Conduct Medal, and a World War II Victory Medal. Torao Okamoto was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army on November 24th, 1945 in Fort Dix, New Jersey, U.S.A. 

Torao Okamoto passed away on October 16th, 1985 at the age of 71 in his residence in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, California. He was interred on October 28th, 1945 at the Los Angeles National Cemetery in West Los Angeles. Torao and his family were most likely of Protestant or Christian religious faith as a Latin-cross was requested as the religious emblem for Torao’s headstone.  

This biography was researched and written by students as part of the Digital Veterans Legacy Project at Loyola Marymount University, funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Cemetery Administration. 
 

TORAO OKAMOTO

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