Bacon Sakatani, wearing a cap, and his friend Keiichi Ikeda, to his left, who were both interned at Heart Mountain in 1942, greet fellow internees George Fujimoto and his wife, Nobu, at an opening dinner. (Esmeralda Bermudez / Los Angeles Times)
Bacon Sakatani, known as Mr. Heart Mountain, is also known for his quirky style. At the reunion’s opening dinner, he wore his Heart Mountain trucker’s cap and his jeans rolled up about four inches, just as he did as a kid at the camp. (Esmeralda Bermudez / Los Angeles Times)
Bacon Sakatani was 13 when he and his family were sent to the Heart Mountain Relocation Center. His parents never spoke about the internment after they left the camp. (Esmeralda Bermudez / Los Angeles Times)
Bacon Sakatani greets Muts Sakamoro, left, and her sister Sayo Togami at the start of the reunion. Busloads arrived from California to visit each other and to see the opening of the Heart Mountain Interpretive Learning Center. (Esmeralda Bermudez / Los Angeles Times)
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A room inside the Heart Mountain Interpretive Learning Center is dedicated to Bacon Sakatani. With original items donated by Japanese American internees, the space replicates a typical barrack where families lived in rural Wyoming. (Esmeralda Bermudez / Los Angeles Times)