For Japanese Americans displaced by war and now wildfire, roots remain elusive

Families whose homes burned in the LA fires recall second world war evacuations and fight to retain connection

The beige ranch house on Mariposa Street had a tatami room with paper windows – a love letter painstakingly built by Johnny Kamon for his bride as a tribute to their Japanese heritage.

Since purchasing the home in 1965 in Altadena – a suburb nestled against the San Gabriel mountains about 15 miles north of Los Angeles – multiple generations of the Kamon family have poured their woodworking skills into making the home their sanctuary.

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