Pat Suzuki

Pat Suzuki was born Chiyoko Suzuki in Cressy, California (northern California) on September 23, in the early 1930s. As the youngest of four children, she was nicknamed "Chiby", which was Japanese for "squirt". She grew up on the family farm, and discovered her love for singing early on at church on Sundays and at local events. But things took a bad turn with the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and Pat and her family were one of many Japanese-American families forced to enter internment camps. After release from the camp, her family returned to California.