The Museum is saddened by the loss of friend and supporter James “Jimmy” Lee. Growing up less than a mile from Pearl Harbor in Kalauao, Jimmy witnessed the attack on December 7, 1941 at age 11, while he was feeding the pigs on his family’s farm.
Jimmy was the star of the Museum’s 2016 Electronic Field Trip, “Remember Pearl Harbor: How Students Like You Experienced the Day of Infamy,” where he brought over 100,000 student viewers to the exact spot where he saw the attack as a young boy. Recollecting that day, Jimmy remembered, “When I looked up, there were hundreds of planes and it was so fascinating to me. I never saw so many planes in my entire life.”
In a particularly poignant moment of filming, Jimmy reflected on his childhood friend Toshi, who he never saw again after December 7, 1941. Watch the video below to hear how Jimmy tracked down Toshi’s family after years of not knowing what happened to him.
Veteran and longtime employee of the US Army Corps of Engineers, Jimmy spent his retirement volunteering for the Pearl Harbor National Monument, sharing his story with visitors from across the globe. He will be missed by many.
