Telephone Operator

"Once a telephone operator, always a telephone operator." So Mrs. Mavis Hutchison described her work as supervisor of the switchboard.

Red haired and hazel eyed, this charming personality with a soft voice takes care of all calls in this center.

Employed since June, Mrs. Hutchison is one of the senior workers under WRA administration and has been a resident of Independence for 12 years.

The most tedious hours are during the graveyard shift when only a few calls are received, which are usually from the Police Department or the hospital.

People from all over the country call here. But most frequent are ones received from other relocation centers. To her, pronouncing the tongue-twisting Japanese names is not difficult because of her constant association with them.

Garage Mechanics

Speaking of unsung heroes, there is a group of workers who have never been recognized as vitally important. The blackened garage mechanics in their very unpleasant work are seldom heard to grumble.

Keeping up with the trend of the warring world seems to be "right up their alley," as the mechanics, armed with a powerful grease gun, track down and destroy the common enemies of all motor cars: "Old Man Dust" and "Mr. Friction."

Then when the shooting ends, the grease monkeys jab bayonets into the oil in the crank case, checking the level of the protecting fluid. When necessary, they throw out old oil that has lost its lubricating quality and refill it again with that life sustaining mechanical "blood."

After this grueling battle with the foes of the automible, the car is withdrawn from the battlefield and checked out to the drivers.

Transportation

Keeping up with the rest of the United States, Manzanar has its own Motor Pool headed by James L. Macnair. It transports men and materials as official duties demand, both inside and out of the center, so that all departments may operate with the greatest possible advantage.

At the present time its fleet of cars and trucks totals 136, and is kept in an enclosed parking lot located near the office at 2-15-6. From there they are dispatched by Chief Dispatcher Harry Oshio, and returned when their assignments are complete. Vehicles are assigned to department heads and requisitions are scrutenized by the motor pool supervisor who determines the legitimacy of the request and acts accordingly. A personnel of 62 is used to operate this department at present.

A system of records is kept to cover the movements of each vehicle. A cost accounting system apportions the use of vehicles to all departments.

Since an economic operational basis is essential, a garage headed by Frank Crilly has been erected in the vicinity of the warehouses to maintain and repair all motorized equipment.

Functions such as greasing, oiling, washing and tuning are a few of the jobs that the garage workers must execute to prevent breakdowns and costly repairs.

Employment

Services rendered by the Employment Department headed by Employment Officer Arthur Miller, consists of the usual duties performed by a public employment office of any community—the placement of workers on all types of work in the center and the maintenance of accurate records and statistics for everyone in the center, as well as a complete set of employment records. The department occupies building 1-5 sharing the barrack with the Records division.

Placement section makes all work assignments, transfers, reclassifications, and terminations. Under the guidance of Junior Placement Officer Arthur Shiohama, Assistant George D. Tani, all applications for jobs, requests, and interviewing of workers are handled. They also conduct occupational counseling and vocational guidance to adjust workers to their jobs and to fit them for relocation employment. Minor labor troubles are usually handled in this office.

Employment records section, under the management of Mary Wada and Assistant Grace Maruki, maintains the official list of job classifications, definitions, ratings and applications for unemployment compensation. It also keeps an occupational file of all workers in primary and secondary occupations as established by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Records Office

Official records, vital statistics, and pre-evacuation information of every person in Manzanar is accurately maintained by the records, registration, and statistical section located in the northern section of building 1-5 sharing it with the Employment Division. It also keeps an accurate record of all arrivals and departures, notifying Washington and various government authorities daily of all persons arriving and departing, including transfers to other centers, indefinite leaves, seasonal work, and short term seasonal work, and short term leaves. It keeps a current record of the population, which is submitted daily to the project director and to Washington. It provides the project director and the division heads with the requested information regarding any individual or family group.

Statistical studies, graphs, and charts are prepared for the project director and others who require them. Occupational coding is also done in this section as well as the interviewing and census taking of all new arrivals. Eight regular monthly, weekly, and daily reports are prepared for the project director, five of which are forwarded to Washington. The office is under the supervision of Kazuo Kay Kageyama with Assistant Daniel Aiso, and Chief Interviewer Emiko Hino.

Evacuee Property

The Evacuee Property Department, established early in March, 1943, to render aid to evacuees in connection with both real and personal properties which they owned prior to evacuation, has its main office in 1-15-5.

This office, headed by Earl W. Barton, evacuee property officer, has helped the evacuees in many and varied problems. Sales of farm machinery and automotive equipment have been made through this office. Assistance is also given in the collection of past-due rents, accounts and other obligations which evacuees have been unable to handle themselves.

This office is in close contact with the field offices located in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. When it is necessary to have property inspected or to contact people on the outside directly, the matter is turned over to them. It also handles evacuee property in private storage which the residents wish to have transferred to the project, and freight shipments to other projects and resettlement points from Manzanar.

Warehouse No. 23 is the receiving and delivering department, with warehouses No. 15, 16, 18 and 40 for storage.

General manager of the warehouse for evacuee properties is Roy Tashima with Assistant Kiichi Namba. Superintendent is Kiyoshi Sugimoto.

Procurement

With the termination of the procurement office in San Francisco last October, responsibilities of procurement fell on the local office headed by B. O. Wilson. The purchasing of essential supplies for all departments and the execution of contracts for the camp are the two functions of this department. The two general terms regarding functions can be sub-divided into six units, namely submission of procurement, preparation of priorities estimates, maintenance of records of priorities and rationing, information regarding non-payment of accounts, personal contact with agencies accepting requisitions or purchase, orders from WRA, and advance estimates.

The personnel list is as follows: Senior Procurement Officer Burney Wilson, Assistant Procurement Officer Lee Poole, successor to Joseph Proff; Office Manager Kazuo Ohi, and Chief Clerk Bill Takenaka.

Mail and Files

Responsible for all incoming and outgoing official mail, and keeping an accurate file on central communications, the Mails and Files section is headed by File Clerk Helena McConnell. Approximately 250 official letters daily from scattered points of the country, plus teletyped communications and telegrams are channeled and filed in this department.

The personnel is as follows: Chief File Clerk Helena McConnell, Junior Clerks Helen Scroggins and Laura Belle Moon, Typist Clerks Riyoko Nakamura, Grace Takahashi, and Chieko Shijo, and File and Typing Clerk Mary Enomoto.

Park Regulations

Many regulations and restrictions were necessitated when the park area south of the center was opened to the public last May.

The mounted police was organized to govern the activities of the picnickers, and to enforce these regulations.

Center residents should observe closely the park rules or they will be penalized to the fullest extent of the law.

The cooperation shown in the observance of these regulations will keep the parks open.

Unsung Hero

Picking up stones and old pieces of brush from the promises of the administration buildings, Mr. Hidesuke Yamamoto has built a reputation well worth being proud of. Pebbles are diminishing by the gross daily. He now holds the name "Man In The Maroon Jacket" given to him by those working in the administration building.