National
Board
Young Women's Christian Associations
of the United States of America
600 Lexington Avenue, New York, N.Y.
Cable Address: Emissarius, New York
Telephone: Plaza 3-4700
November 4, 1938
Miss Frances Maeda
4054 N. Vancouver Ave.
Portland, Oregon
Dear Miss Maeda:
Your
letter of October 20, addressed to Dr. Ormsbee, has come to me for
answer since I am the member of the Personnel Bureau staff who usually
carries the initial correspondence with new applicants.
When
your letter arrived, I immediately asked our files to tell me how
many positions there were in the YWCA which were occupied by Japanese
girls. According to our records at this time, there are only five
professional jobs listed. Two of these are in Los Angeles -- the executive
and the Girl Reserve secretary in the Japanese Branch. Two are in
San Francisco -- the executive and the house secretary in the Branch.
The fifth is in the Honolulu Association where there is a Girl Reserve
assistant position. All of our roll calls for this fall have not been
received, and there may be one or two others when they are complete.
I am giving you this information because I think it only fair to tell
you how limited the opportunities for Japanese girls are.
If
I interpret the first paragraph of your letter correctly, you are
asking also whether there would be opportunities for you in the YWCA
outside the Japanese Branches. In my experience in the Bureau this
question has not been raised before. However, tradition would be against
one who sought such an opportunity. Our experience in recommending
girls of European parentage, when the tradition is to think in terms
of the older, American backgrounds for our leadership, leads me to
believe that the Association generally is not yet ready to break with
its traditional thinking.
I
am interested in the information which you have given us about yourself,
and I am perfectly willing to send you the materials to register with
the Personnel Bureau. Openings would be very rare, as you can see
from the information I have given above. However, if you are willing
to go through the detail necessary to complete your registration,
I shall be glad to have materials on file for you and write you in
case such a vacancy should be registered.
I
am sorry that my letter has to be a discouraging one on the whole,
but I should be glad to have you register with us if you desire to.
Since
you have expressed an interest in work with business and industrial
girls, as well as Girl Reserves, I am sending you job description
materials for both types of work.
Sincerely yours
[signed]Lillian
Espy, Personnel Bureau