GREEN RIVER — A pair of Rock Springs brothers are being remembered as part of a heavily decorated combat team in World War II following a recent post by the Sweetwater County Historical Museum.
Public Engagement Coordinator Laura Dale wrote a St. Patrick’s Day social media post about the day being celebrated at the Park Lounge, formerly the Sage Room, at the Rock Springs Park Hotel. In the post, George Okano and his Buffalo State Playboys band were highlighted as the group regularly performed there. The museum further noted a previous post about George and his brother Jiro from 2019.
The Okanos served in World War II with the Army’s 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a group consisting of second-generation Japanese American soldiers. Many of the soldiers had family members who were forced into interment camps such as Heart Mountain, located near Cody. According to the museum, 120,000 people were placed at Japanese internment camps during the war.
The Okanos’ regiment saw heavy combat in Europe. The group earned more than 18,000 awards in under two years, which include 9,486 Purple Hearts, 4,000 Bronze Stars, 560 Silver Stars, 29 Distinguished Service Crosses, and 21 Medals of Honor. It had a casualty rate so high that its original 4,000 men complement was replaced nearly twice over.
After the war, George and Jiro returned to Rock Springs and operated Okano’s Greenhouse on Blairtown Road.
