Vincent Okamoto
| Vincent Okamoto | |
|---|---|
| Born |
November 22, 1943 Poston, Arizona, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Soldier, judge |
Vincent Okamoto (born November 22, 1943 in Poston, Arizona) is a former U.S. Army officer. He is the most highly decorated Japanese American to survive the Vietnam War.
Okamoto was born November 22, 1943, to an American family of Japanese origin that was interned during the Second World War at the Poston relocation camp in Arizona. He is the youngest of the ten children of Henry and Yone Okamoto.
Following the family's release they moved to South Chicago, where his parents ran a small grocery store. The family later moved to Gardena, California, when he was twelve years old. He attended Gardena High School, where he served as senior class president. He was a three-year letter man in track and football and belonged to the Men's Honor Society.
Okamoto attended El Camino College from 1962 to 1965. From 1965 to 1967 he attended University of Southern California receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations in 1967. He enrolled in the ROTC and was the first non-UCLA student to be commissioned through the UCLA ROTC program. He earned his commission as an U.S. Army 2nd Lieutenant.
After receiving Ranger training he was given orders to report to Vietnam. In 1968, Lieutenant Okamoto was assigned as the intelligence-liaison officer for 2 months for the Phoenix Program while attached to Company B of the 2nd Battalion, 25th Infantry Division.
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