Kichio Allen Arai

Biography

He was born to Japanese immigrant parents in Port Blakeley, Bainbridge Island, Washington. Although his birth was originally reported as August 30, 1901, his father later stated in 1921 that he was actually born on August 30, 1900, in an affidavit to amend Kichio's birth certificate. However, he continued to write his birthday as 1901.

Their family moved to the International District in Seattle where they stayed from the before 1910 until they were forcibly located by Japanese internment during World War II. He spoke Japanese and visited Japan once for less than 6 months during the 1910s. He graduated from Broadway High School in Seattle in 1919. From 1919 to 1925, he attended University of Washington, where he received a bachelor's degree in architecture. In 1925, he was one of at least five students of Japanese descent to graduate from the UW architecture program. He married Nobu Kawaguchi on October 6, 1932. The building was completed on October 5, 1941, just a few months before he and most of the sangha would be forcibly removed and interned in camps. Like most Japanese Americans in Seattle, he was interned at Minidoka in Idaho, arriving with his sons on August 18, 1942. His wife Nobu and daughter arrived a few weeks later on September 5.

He was able to leave the camp early for employment by working as a draftsman, traveling to Madison, Wisconsin, on October 15, 1944. The rest of his family left the camp on May 28, 1945. He died in 1966 in Los Angeles and was buried in Bellevue.

Works

Seattle Nichiren Buddhist Church (1928-1929) and garage (1933) Seattle Dojo (1934) Seattle Nisei Veterans Hall (1940) Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Temple (1940-1941) Idaho-Oregon Buddhist Temple (1955-1958) in Ontario, Oregon White River Buddhist Temple (1963-1964) in Auburn, Washington Shinran Shonin 700th Anniversary Memorial Hall annex (1963-1964)