John Tsukano
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Tsukano (1924 - July 20, 2005) was a Japanese American author and World War II veteran. Tsukano grew up in Mill Camp in Pu'unene, Maui, Hawaii, and graduated from Henry Perrine Baldwin High School. Part of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and a replacement soldier for the 100th Battalion, he received a Purple Heart in Europe. In 1985, Tsukano published "Bridge of Love," his book about the units.
Tsukano was also a member of a swim team on Maui in the late 1930s that won a national title and was set to try for the U.S. team and the 1940 Summer Olympics. However, the games were cancelled and Tsukano joined the war effort.
Tsukano made regular trips to Italy and France with fellow Nisei veterans, was active in a sister-city program with Biffontaine, France, contributed articles to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and wrote about the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland.
