Film to be shown Sunday highlights heroism of Nebraskan during World War II

The monthly movie at the Kimball Presbyterian Church will honor veterans a bit early.

This Sunday’s 60-minute movie will tell the story of a Nebraska decorated veteran who served as a gunner in 58 missions during World War II. The Most Honorable Son: Ben Kuroki, is a Nebraska Educational Television production on the life of the Hershey native and will be shown at 3 p.m. at the church. Popcorn will be provided, and anyone who wants to bring soft drinks is encouraged to do so.

Bev Atkins, who served on the NET Foundation board at the time the movie was being produced, said the film would be a good lead-in into Veterans Day.

“We thought it would be a good time to show it near Veterans Day. We’re early on it, but that is the week we usually show the movie so we just kept it the same,” she said. “It is to honor our veterans and to give a background to people who don’t know anything about the Second World War a little bit of what really went on and what happened to the Japanese people.”

Kuroki was born in 1917 in Nebraska and enlisted in the military after the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese. He joined the fight, as did three of his brothers.

He flew in different theaters, including bombing Japan. Kuroki said one of his most difficult assignments was bombing oil refineries in Romania.

“Probably the most heroic thing, he was in the group that bombed oil refineries in Romania, and he was one of the few that lived,” Atkins said. “They went in under the radar. I think, they were trying to get under and not too many lived.”

There were 52 of 178 planes lost in the oil refinery attack, and 300 airmen were killed.

Even though he flew in 58 missions in the war, Kuroki often said his 59th mission was the toughest - enduring racism that he experienced during the war.

“The Japanese were not treated real well, even though, like the Kuroki family, all four of them served in the military,” Atkins said. “I think they probably didn’t know what to do with them, like they didn’t know what to do with Ben.”

“He had difficulty getting into the (Army Air Corps). He had difficulty in any of his positions,” she added. “The crew and the people that really knew him defended him to the nth degree for anything that he did. They protected him so he wouldn’t accidentally get shot, because that was a problem when he was in some areas.”

After the war, Kuroki returned to Nebraska and went to the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. He primarily worked for and owned newspapers after his graduation from UNL.

Atkins said the film is important because it not only shows the life of Kuroki, but shows what life was like for Nebraskans during the war.

“I think it shows the character of Nebraskans as well as the Japanese who lived here, the sacrifices that they made during the Second World War and what they had to deal with, because there was not all this mass communication,” she said. “They didn’t contact their families for weeks or months, and they didn’t come home. It truly shows the background at that time and the sacrifices that people made, the ones that were home in the rural areas. And Nebraskans were a dependable rural, ethic, moral people, basically, and I think that film shows that - what kind of an area that he came from.”

In addition to the film, Atkins encourages veterans who have memorabilia to share them after the film and also share a story about their military service if they wish.