Christina Yamauchi

When 27-year-old Christina Yamauchi arrived in the United States 10 years ago from Japan, she knew little English.

Her mother, Debbie Williams who works today at Hickman County Elementary School, wanted to move back to the United States near her family in western Kentucky, but her father, a construction worker, stayed in Japan. Yamauchi graduated from high school a few years later with little knowledge of how to write or speak English.  Her life quickly became an endless string of dead-end jobs, where she had no savings and just enough money to pay her bills.  She wanted something more, and enrolled at West Kentucky Community & Technical College in the spring 2002.  
   
Remedial help, where she got one-on-one assistance at the college, allowed her to take classes, but working full-time and attending college was too much for her. “I decided not to come back after the first semester,” Yamauchi recalled.  “I went back to the same lifestyle as before. Working full time and staying broke.”

In 2003, she decided to join the Army National Guard like her brother, because she knew the armed service would help her reach her dream of a college education.  She immediately enrolled again in WKCTC after basic training, and was able to attend college full-time without working as much.  Then she found out she was pregnant, and the thought of not completing her college education loomed.

“When I found out that I was pregnant I worked part time and I still attended college full time. There were days I did not feel like going to college but I went for the future of my baby,” she said.

On July 11, 2004, her son, Shawn Daniel, was born, and though she knew she would be raising him as a single mom, Yamauchi said the birth of her son was happiest day of her life. “I held my baby in my arms and made a promise to myself to do my best to raise him and give him a good future,” she said.

Six weeks after the birth of her son, Yamauchi was back in college, determined to finish. Placing her infant boy into a daycare center broke her heart, especially when other mothers tried to make her feel guilty about it.  “But I knew in the long run if I finished school, my son could have a better future,” Yamauchi said. “So I kept going to school. I lived the life of a single mom, worked part time, attended school full time, and was a member of the Army National Guard. There were days I scraped money to buy diapers for my son. But I kept telling myself, finish school and life will get better.”

In July 2005 Yamauchi learned that her National Guard unit – 913th Engineer Company based in Union City, Tennessee – would be deployed to Iraq in October of that year. Knowing her time with her son was limited, Yamauchi again dropped out of her classes, so she could spend as much time as possible with her young son before beginning her one-year deployment.

While it was hard to leave, Yamauchi felt fortunate because her brother, Kenji, who was also in her unit, was deployed with her.  By October 13, 2005, the unit was facing the trials and tribulations of Iraq.  Her deployment was routine until two months before her unit was to go home.

On August 1, 2006, her brother’s Humvee hit an improvised explosive device. My brother and the gunner were airlifted to another base where they were treated, and sent back to the United States for more treatment.

 “I saw my brother for a few hours after he was hit. He looked so awful. But he was the lucky one that night,” Yamauchi recalled. “The man that set next to my brother unfortunately did not make it that night. He was such a young and funny guy that could make people laugh even in a stressful situation. He was the driver for my brother’s Humvee. Over the period of ten months I got to know him, and he had so much going on for him when he got home. It was a very big loss for everyone in our unit, especially those that were close to him.”

Yamauchi’s unit returned to the states on October 13, 2006, and not long after she returned she signed up for college classes again, enrolling in the Spring 2007 semester at WKCTC. “It was the hardest semester I ever had to go through. Not because of the classes, but emotionally dealing with being home from Iraq,” Yamauchi said. “I had to drive 40-50 minutes to get to school and during that drive I would get so emotional. Most days, my mascara would be smeared and eyeliner would be gone by the time I would arrive to school. But when I got to school, I wiped my tears off, and I went in the classroom like nothing ever happened. There were days I did not feel like talking to anyone, but I knew that I had to finish school.”

In December 2007, Yamauchi completed all the coursework to receive an Associate in Applied Science Degree with a Medical Administrative Option and recently was offered a job as a project coordinator for a company called Management Recruiting Japanese in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

MRJ is a recruitment firm for the Japanese automotive industry. As a bilingual recruiters assistant, Yamauchi talks with human resource personnel as well as candidates.  “This job is a dream come true,” Yamauchi said. “The long journey made me a more professional person in the business world.”

Yamauchi said she knows many people facing obstacles like those she faced might question why they should continue to try.  She said she would encourage them to never give up. “A little education can take you far in life,” she said. “Once you receive your certificate, diploma or degree, no one can take that education you’ve earned away.”

“It had taken me about five years to complete this degree, but I am very proud of what I have accomplished with all I had going on with my life. There were days I thought I would never graduate, but I never gave up,” Yamauchi added. “It has been a long journey for me and my son, but now that I have finished my degree, I am looking forward to starting my new job with more hope than ever that we are going to have a brighter future.”