Alice K. Kurashige was the first Japanese-American woman to be commissioned in the US Marine Corps, reaching the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. She served between 1965 and 1970. The daughter of Akira and Kyomi Kurashige of

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, Alice had two uncles who served in the Marines and was always interested in being in it. She and her family spent time in a concentration camp in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

where she remembers being hungry and living in shacks. After graduating from San Diego State College in 1964, she attended

Officers Candidate School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a commission as officers in the armed forces of a country. How OCS is run differs between countries and services. Typi ...

where she saw a female Marine for the first time in her life. She was commissioned five months after graduation. From November 1969 to May 1970, she was

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of Women Marine Company, Headquarters Battalion at Barstow, California's Marine Corps Supply Center, along with First Lieutenant Rebecca M. Kraft, Captain Joan M. Hammond, First Lieutenant Diane L. Hamel, First Lieutenant Geraldine E. Peeler, Captain Vanda K. Brame, and First Lieutenant Linda J. Lenhart. According to Linda Cates Lacy's ''We Are the Marines! World War I to the Present,'' she was also the first woman to be assigned a Food Service Officer in the Marine Corps since

, after completing 12-week course in food service supervision at Fort Lee (Virginia).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurashige, Alice K. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American military personnel of Japanese descent United States Marine Corps officers Female United States Marine Corps personnel Military personnel from San Diego San Diego State University alumni 21st-century American women