The Road to Sand Hills: The Tale of a Forgotten WWII Japanese American Soldier

George Suyama, like many young American soldiers who died in combat, did not live long enough to leave lasting memories for loved ones. With no grave marker, all that remains is his name etched into the Wall of the Missing at the Epinal American Cemetery in France and engraved on a small plaque attached to the city hall of Biffontaine.

The author, in studying the details of the Vosges campaign of the 100th/442^nd Regimental Combat Team in WWII, learned of the only Nisei soldier who was declared MIA and whose body was never recovered. The author became intensely curious about this man and began researching his life.

Who was George Washington Suyama? Where did he come from? What did he experience in his brief existence? And how did he come to be on that fatal battlefield?

The Road to Sand Hills, based on historical facts, begins with George's father, Ichiro, who immigrates in 1900 from his subsistence farm in Japan to a new life in northern Montana where George and his three siblings are born. The

story traces George through farm life and family tragedies and heartbreak. The bombing of Pearl Harbor and the resurrection of dormant prejudices spur him to enlist in the U.S. Army. In 1944, George leaves the safety of a stateside assignment guarding German POWs to join the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team as a replacement -- just as the unit begins its storied liberation of the German-occupied town of Bruyères and the miraculous rescue of the "Lost Texas Battalion."

George Suyama represents one of the thousands of ordinary men who have served as front-line combat soldiers in virtually all our country's conflicts. These often faceless and forgotten men have carried the security and freedom of this nation on their backs and often into early graves. This story is tribute to these men.

Carl B. Williams is retired from government service, where he held various state and federal appointments. He is an amateur historian with a special interest in WWII and the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team and is an active member and volunteer in several Nisei World War II organizations.His interest was encouraged by his wife, June, whose uncle, Kiyoshi Ono, fought at the Battle of Bruyères in northeastern France and the Rescue of the Lost Battalion. In 2016, the Author was appointed by the City of Bruyères as an unpaid volunteer to design and raise funds for the "Torch Monument." Many generous people contributed to the project. That monument is based on the design of the shoulder patch worn by the Nisei soldiers who, at great cost, liberated Bruyères and relieved the "lost" Texans trapped in the Vosges mountains. The granite sculpture was dedicated in 2017 by then Mayor Yves Bonjean, who worked tirelessly for its completion. The Author believes that the stories of these heroic Hawaiian and Mainland soldiers and the hardships suffered by the inhabitants of Bruyères will be lost to future generations unless this important history is shared with younger generations.Williams is the author of a children's book, Marie of Bruyères: A Little French Girl Who Meets Her Japanese-American Liberators. The book can be purchased on the Heroes of the Vosges Museum website, vosgesheroes.org. The museum is intended to attract visitors and serve as a permanent repository for Nisei artifacts. Williams received approval from the town of Bruyères to create a start-up museum to commemorate the Nisei soldiers of the 100th/442nd Regimental Combat Team (RCT) and the members of the irregular soldiers of the French Forces of the Interior (FFI). Members of the Resistance risked their lives to guide the Nisei, report on the enemy's strength and disposition, and provide valuable military intelligence. At this writing, a temporary exhibit is planned for October 2024.Carl B. Williams can be contacted at cwilliams@intl-aero.net.