Every September, the Puyallup Fairgrounds south of Seattle hosts a huge country fair with rides, snacks, animals and 4-H competitions.  Many people do not realize that these fairgrounds, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, were also the site of a place called Camp Harmony.  It was here that thousands of Japanese-American citizens from the Seattle area were housed before being shipped to the Minidoka Incarceration Center in Idaho.

A new title from our Book Fair is,  The Fences Between us :The Diary of Piper Davis by Kirby Larson.  This timely book is the story of thirteen-year-old Piper Davis who records in her diary her experiences beginning in December 1941 when her brother joins the Navy and the United States goes to war.  Piper’s father is a pastor for a Japenses Baptist Church in Seattle.  Piper and her father follow his congregants to a Idaho internment camp.  Piper attempts to document her life through photography. This book also includes historical notes.
Just last week, as the Japanese American community marked their Day of Remembrance, Seattle University announced that they would award honorary degrees to the 15 Japanese-Americans whose educations were disrupted and were incarcerated during World War II. For most, relatives will accept the degree as all but one of the former students have since passed away.