The Best Mistake: 66 Years Ago, Ken Stover Boarded The Wrong Ship And Found Aloha, Part 2

If being a Japanese-American on O’ahu during World War II was tough, being a Hawai’i-born, Japanese-American in the 1960s was tumultuous, especially in Kentucky, where the newlyweds landed when Ken received another transfer.

“In Kentucky, I had to ride on the back of the bus because I was not white,” Dora recounts. “When others found out I was Japanese, they were not very kind. And when they found out I was from Hawai’i on top of that, they mocked me, asking if I lived in a grass shack. I may have had an outhouse growing up, but I did not live in a grass shack!” In part two of this series, I share the story of how the love of my husband’s grandparents overcame the difficulties of being a biracial couple at a time when it was not socially acceptable.