An enlisted soldier gives the first salute to a photo of posthumously commissioned 2nd Lt. Akio Nishikawa during a ceremony at Keehi Lagoon Memorial State Park, Hawaii, Jan. 26, 2026. (Wyatt Olson/Stars and Stripes)
KEEHI LAGOON MEMORIAL STATE PARK, Hawaii — The Army has posthumously commissioned seven University of Hawaii ROTC cadets of Japanese descent who were killed during World War II while fighting as enlisted soldiers in Europe.
Their academic studies were disrupted with the Japanese surprise attack on Oahu on Dec. 7, 1941. They eventually enlisted in the storied ranks of the 100th Infantry Battalion or the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
“Although these men did not have the opportunity to complete their university studies, they’ve earned their degrees in full through their unwavering service and sacrifice on behalf of a grateful nation,” Gen. Ronald Clark, commander of U.S. Army Pacific, said during Monday’s ceremony at Keehi Lagoon Memorial State Park in Honolulu.
Near him was a table holding lei-adorned photos of the soldiers.
“And their memory will live on in the hearts of their families and in the soldiers who follow in their footsteps with the enduring values of our Army,” he said.
The University of Hawaii in 2012 bestowed bachelor’s degrees on the seven men.
After years of lobbying by local veterans groups, Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll last fall approved upgrades to the rank of second lieutenant – the appointment they would have held had they completed the ROTC program, according to Clark.
Commissioned were:
• Sgt. Daniel Betsui, of Kauai, who died Aug. 2, 1944, in an explosion in Italy
• Sgt. Jenhatsu Chinen, of Oahu, who died July 5, 1944, in Italy while storming a hill
• Sgt. Robert Murata, of Oahu, who died Oct. 9, 1944, during an artillery attack in France
• Staff Sgt. Grover Nagaji, of Oahu, who died June 26, 1944, during the Battle of Belvedere in Italy
• Pvt. Akio Nishikawa, of Maui, who died July 11, 1944, in Italy during the Rome-Arno Campaign
• Pfc. Hiroichi Tomita, of Maui, who died July 12, 1944, in Italy during the Rome-Arno Campaign
• Sgt. Howard Urabe, of Kauai, who died July 4, 1944, during an artillery attack in Italy
The outbreak of World War II altered the plans and lives of many young men, but Japanese-Americans carried an even heavier burden.
Gen. Ronald Clark, commander of U.S. Army Pacific, speaks during a ceremony at Keehi Lagoon Memorial State Park, Hawaii, Jan. 26, 2026, that posthumously commissioned seven Hawaii soldiers whose ROTC was cut short with the outbreak of World War II. They were killed in action as enlisted soldiers. (Wyatt Olson/Stars and Stripes)
A lei-adorned photo of Hiroichi Tomita, killed in action during World War II, and a certificate of honorary promotion stand as part of a posthumous commissioning ceremony at Keehi Lagoon Memorial State Park, Hawaii, Jan. 26, 2026. (Wyatt Olson/Stars and Stripes)
Two months after the surprise attack, President Franklin Roosevelt issued an executive order that in essence treated Japanese-Americans as enemy aliens, with many rounded up and imprisoned in relocation camps.
Thus, the seven soldiers commissioned Monday were barred from joining the Army in the opening months of the war.
Instead, they first joined the Hawaii Territorial Guard and later became members of the Varsity Victory Volunteers, which helped build military infrastructure in Hawaii.
By early 1943, Roosevelt reversed course and signed an order creating the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, composed almost entirely of Japanese-Americans and that fought in Europe.
“The principle on which this country was founded and by which it has always been governed is that Americanism is a matter of mind and heart,” Roosevelt said at the signing. “Americanism is not, and never was, a matter of race or ancestry.”
During Monday’s ceremony, non-commissioned officers participated in the military tradition of the silver-dollar salute in the formal commissioning.
One by one, an NCO would approach a table displaying photos of the seven soldiers, first taking the coin, then offering the newly commissioned officer his first salute.
“Their courage and sacrifice are woven into the fabric of our Army’s history, the history of the state of Hawaii and the enduring strength of our nation,” Clark said.
