Cedrick Shimo was born in 1919. His parents were immigrants from Okayama, Japan. During World War l his father operated a huge cotton ranch in Imperial Valley but with cotton prices plummeting after the war he moved to Los Angeles where he worked for the Rafu Shimpo. In 1924 the family moved to Boyle Heights, a multi-ethnic neighborhood. Shimo was active in Boy Scout Troop 197, kendo, and the Cougars, a Japanese American athletic club. Shimo attended First Street School, Stevenson Junior High School, and Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School. After graduating from high school and UCLA, Shimo was attending graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He received his draft notice the very next day on December 8th 1941 but had to hitchhike back to report to his draft board in Los Angeles because a train fare was denied for looking like the enemy. He reported for duty in January 1942. His father, a martial arts instructor, subsequently was arrested and detained by the FBI for the duration of the war while his mother was sent to the Manzanar concentration camp. After two years his parents were united at the Crystal City Internment Camp in Texas. With a shortage of bilingual specialists in the armed forces, Shimo answered a call for volunteers for the Military Intelligence Service Language School. Before embarking for overseas duty he was denied a furlough to visit his mother in Manzanar because the West Coast at that time was closed to all Japanese Americans including soldiers. He was enraged and when be voiced his complaint, he and 20 others were expelled from the intelligence School and eventually placed in the 1800th Engineering General Service Battalion, a segregated group consisting of German, Italian, and Japanese American servicemen who were considered potential troublemakers and kept under surveillance. Their role was to repair damages to roads, bridges and fences caused by combat troops during training maneuvers. Shimo returned to Boyle Heights after being honorably discharged from the 1800th where he served for two years. He worked for a Customs House brokerage followed by a 25 years stint with a Chinese importing company. Shimo then worked for Honda as vice-president/secretary of the export division until his retirement.