Thomas Taro Higa

Easy and Able Companies, 100th Infantry Battalion

When he returned to Hawaiʻi as a teenager, he carried with him a bicultural identity that would later shape his unique contributions during the war.

Drafted into the U.S. Army, Higa entered service in June 1941 at Schofield Barracks, serving in the federalized 298th Infantry Regiment of the Hawaiʻi National Guard. He recalled receiving clothing, blankets, and shoes — enough that he rarely had to spend his modest $21-a-month salary. Life was disciplined and often monotonous, punctuated only by small expenses like a 50-cent haircut or laundry service.

Nothing, however, prepared him for the morning of December 7, 1941. Awakening to the roar of planes and columns of smoke rising from Kāneʻohe, he initially believed he was witnessing a large-scale training exercise — until exploding shells made clear that the world had changed.

Higa became a member of the 100th Infantry Battalion (Separate), a unit of Americans of Japanese ancestry, whose loyalty and bravery would become legendary. He shipped out with the 100th on June 5, 1942, and trained at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin and Camp Shelby, Mississippi.

In Europe, he fought in the grueling Italian campaign, enduring mud, darkness, and exhaustion on long marches through the Volturno River and Monte Cassino operations. Originally a member of Company E which was dissolved in December 1943 due to the heavy casualties sustained by the 100th, Higa later served with Company A.

During one battle, a bullet pierced the top of his helmet; had he been an inch taller, it would have been fatal. His smaller stature also provided unexpected advantages — while taller comrades dug deeper foxholes, he could take cover more quickly to recover his strength during brief moments of rest.

Higa was wounded twice in combat and awarded two Purple Hearts for his injuries. He also was awarded a Silver Star while serving with Company E, 100th Infantry Battalion (Separate), in November 1943, in Italy.

His Silver Star citation [Headquarters, 34th Inf Div, GO No. 142 (September 29, 1945)] reads in part:

“When the enemy concentrated a heavy barrage upon his platoon area, Private First Class Higa was seriously wounded in the back. Disregarding his wounds, Private First Class Higa carried two men 150 yards to a sheltered ledge. Private First Class Higa then went back through the heavy fire and helped carry a litter case to the aid station. When Private First Class Higa’s wounds were examined, they were determined to be serious enough to warrant immediate evacuation. The courage and devotion to duty displayed by Private First Class Higa while painfully wounded, reflects great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of the United States.”

While recovering in the continental United States, he met issei parents held in incarceration camps who feared their sons were being used as “human shields.” Deeply moved, Higa embarked on a six-month speaking tour sponsored by the War Relocation Authority and the Japanese American Citizens League, reassuring families that the heavy casualties suffered by Nisei soldiers were the result of their own bravery and willingness to volunteer for dangerous missions — not military neglect.

His knowledge of the Okinawan language later prompted a personal request from Brigadier General Kendall Fielder for Higa to join operations in Okinawa as Allied forces prepared for the island invasion. There, he used his cultural and linguistic fluency to persuade civilians hiding in caves to surrender peacefully, entering unarmed and speaking directly to frightened families. His efforts helped prevent countless casualties in a landscape where civilians, soldiers, and propaganda-driven fear were deeply intertwined.

After the war, Higa returned to Hawaiʻi and built a new kind of service — this time centered on family, community, and healing.

His commitment to Okinawa extended beyond the battlefield. Before and after his deployment there, Higa became deeply involved in organizing relief efforts for war-torn Okinawa. Working with community leaders in Hawaiʻi, he helped raise awareness and mobilize support for civilian aid, speaking at public meetings and churches to appeal for donations and solidarity. These efforts became part of a broader Okinawan War Relief Movement that connected Hawaiʻi’s local communities with reconstruction efforts in the devastated islands.

Higa and his wife, Toshiko, were married in November 1945 and had five children — Alvin Higa, Samuel Higa, Dr. Nolan Higa, Pauline Higa Iwamoto, and Elsie Higa Yoshimura. From 1957 to 1970, the Higa family operated “Boat Rental Ala Wai” on the Ala Wai Canal. It was both a small business and a family hub: the children worked alongside their parents on weekends and during school vacations, learning responsibility while strengthening family bonds.

Over time, the boat house became more than a workplace — it was a gathering place where wartime friends reunited, new friendships formed, and visiting Japanese researchers from the East-West Center connected with the local community.

Higa always found great joy in reuniting with his fellow comrades. While raising his family in Kāneʻohe, he often took them to Kaʻaʻawa Park for the annual 100th Infantry Battalion picnic. For the children, it was a day filled with games and laughter, while nearby the veterans sat together under the shade, “talking story” and reflecting on their shared wartime experiences.

Today, his descendants continue to share his stories, preserving the legacy of a man whose life stretched across oceans and whose courage helped bridge nations.

Read Thomas Taro Higa’s Memoirs