By Christine Young and Marie Mischel SALT LAKE CITY — Seiji Hayashi, a freshman at Judge Memorial Catholic High School, got a greater appreciation for his heritage recently while watching his grandfather, Masami Hayashi, receive the Congressional Gold Medal in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 2. The Congressional Gold Medal, which is bestowed by the United States Congress, is presented to those who perform an outstanding deed or act of service to the security, prosperity or national interest to the country. It, along with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, is the highest civilian award in the U.S. Masami Hayashi was one of the Japanese American soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team who were veterans of the Military Intelligence Service during World War II. Now a retired metallurgist, Masami Hayashi studied in Tokyo as a teenager and was drafted for his Japanese language skills. He served from 1944 to 1946; one of his duties was as a translator for Army investigators of war crimes. "He was sworn to secrecy…so he didn’t really talk about it too much," said Seiji Hayashi, adding that he learned more about his grandfather from presentations at the awards ceremony. "He was out fighting, doing all this stuff for the military, while his family was still in the (internment) camps. It’s nice to know that he was very loyal to the U.S." Masami Hayashi said he is honored to have received the medal, but "It belongs to the group with whom I served in the Army." His daughter, Sherri Hayashi, commissioner of the Utah Labor Commission, also attended the medal presentation. "It was very important for my son and I to attend the ceremony with him because I think it really is a validation of the loyalty of Japanese Americans serving in the military during World War II, especially when other Japanese-Americans were being questioned for their loyalty," she said.
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