The VVV Story

Lt. Ralph Yempuku, Co. G, 442nd Inf., is a 1936 graduate from the University of Hawaii. He taught physical education for several years after graduating and is a good all-round athlete naming tennis, swimming, and football among his favorites. When the war broke out and the boys of Japanese ancestry were heartbreakingly dismissed from the Hawaiian Territorial Guard, Lt. Yempuku was instrumental in organizing and leading the triple V 's — an organization of loyal fellows who gave up their university work and gave, both actually and literally speaking, their services to Uncle Sam. In an effort to show their intense loyalty and their sincere desire to be of service, these university students left schools, organized themselves into the Triple V‘s, and offered their services to the army gratis. They were taken to Schofield and did many odd and menial tasks. The work so greatly pleased the officers the triple V's were given a substantial raise in pay. A few months later, the combat team was formed and the triple V's volunteered en mass.

Lt. Yempuku is a quiet, modest officer who states Hawaii is truly a paradise and that “there's no other place like it!”