American Man Reunites With Japanese Lover After 70 Years
Who doesn’t like a cute love story? Here’s what we have for you! A story that started during the Korean War and found it’s closure right now
During the Korean War in 1953, Duane Mann — a 22-year-old sailor from Iowa, USA was stationed in Japan, where he fell in love for the first time! Her name was Peggy Yamaguchi, and to him, she was perfect. Mann who is now 91 years old said, “She was such a pretty girl, and so sensitive and kind, we had so much fun.” The pair met at a military officers’ club, where Yamaguchi worked, and Mann was hired as a mechanic in his off hours. Yamaguchi learnt English, and she helped him to translate conversations between service members and locals. Everyday there was a live band at the club, and one evening after work, Peggy and Mann started to dance. People would just stand and watch them. They fell in love.
About a year later, their romance came to an abrupt halt when the US Navy sent Mann back to the United States sooner than expected. At the time, Yamaguchi was 22 and pregnant with their child. The young couple came up with a plan. They decided, Mann would go back to Iowa, USA, collect the money he had saved in his bank account there — and bring Yamaguchi to America. He wanted to marry her. His plan fell through when he arrived in his hometown and discovered that his father had spent all of his savings — which he put in his father’s name, in case he was killed in the war.
If he would have known that he didn’t have any money, he would have never gone home. While he struggled to find a solution, the couple stayed in touch through letters, and Mann began working at a highway construction company — the highest-paying job he could find. After a month of correspondence, Yamaguchi stopped replying to his letters and Mann did not know why. Mann later learned the reason — His mother had intervened and burned Yamaguchi’s letters, as she did not approve of her son marrying a Japanese girl. Finally, his sister snuck him one last letter from Yamaguchi, which had arrived a few months later. It said she had lost their baby and married a member of the U.S. Air Force. So, Yamaguchi got married in 1955.
A strong sense of guilt swelled up inside Mann. It lingered for seven decades. He was worried that she would be thinking that he had abandoned her. As he moved through life — he started a successful business, got married twice and fathered six children — Yamaguchi never left his mind. To this day, he has kept two photos of her tucked in his wallet. He tried to track her down, he said, but he never had any luck as he just wanted her to know that he had not abandoned her.
In a last effort to find her, Mann posted a plea on Facebook on 1st May 2022, sharing a photo he had taken of her along with the whole story. He wrote that he carried “a very heavy heart because of what all happened.” Friends, strangers and internet sleuths gave suggestions. A local news channel, KETV7, picked up the story, spreading Mann’s plea even further. That’s when Theresa Wong, 23 years old in Vancouver, Canada saw the post. She worked at the History Channel. She said, “She decided to join the search, and soon, “I had her name, the names of her relatives. It all came together very quickly,” Wong typed in “Peggy Yamaguchi” on newspapers.com, hoping to find a marriage announcement of some sort. And yes! She found it. She shared her findings with KETV7 and gave an address in Michigan, USA to go to. A reporter contacted Yamaguchi’s son, Rich Sedenquist. At first, Sedenquist, 66, was puzzled by the message, but once he showed his 91-year-old mother, Peggy Yamaguchi old photos of Mann, she said, “I remember him.” Yamaguchi had mostly suppressed memories of Mann, but suddenly, the dancing felt like yesterday, she said.
When she learned Mann was searching for her she was very surprised. She now stays in Michigan’s Escanaba city, where she raised her three sons and with the husband she married in 1955. Contrary to Mann’s fear, Yamaguchi Sedenquist did not have any hard feelings. She said that when Mann left Japan it was hard but because he was in the military, “when he had to go, he had to go.” Knowing she was alive, Mann was adamant about meeting Yamaguchi in person. Mann’s eldest son, Brian Mann, 63, joined him for the journey. Growing up, Brian Mann and his siblings had heard stories about his father’s long-lost love, and supported his efforts to reunite with her.
As the father and son drove about 14 hours from Iowa to Michigan for the 1st June 2022 meeting, Mann was filled with anxiousness. “Do you think she’ll let me hug her?” he asked timidly. The moment he saw Yamaguchi, his worries subsided. She got up and gave him a hug, and a lot of kisses on the cheek. The first thing Yamaguchi asked Mann was: “Do you remember the dancing?”
They spent hours remembering earlier times, and Mann learned that Yamaguchi named one of her sons after him. Her eldest child, Mike, was given the middle name Duane. “It was a special experience,” said Yamaguchi, adding that she assured Mann that she never felt abandoned by him. Their families also met, and everyone was great together.
Mann said, “I’m at peace with it now. Still, I would love to dance with her again, “just one more time.”
