The Okubo family — Ben and his wife, Shizue (Susan), and children Ruby, Henry, and Helen — were living in Los Angeles when the United States joined World War II. On February 19, 1942, Executive Order 9066 was signed into law, forcibly removing individuals of Japanese descent from their homes, and requiring them to relocate further inland. By May of that year, the Okubo family had sold their business, their home and most of their possessions, and had been moved to temporary housing at the Santa Anita Racetrack among more than 8,500 others. Ben later said he felt lucky the family was placed in a barracks and not in one of the horse stalls. In September 1942 they were moved to the Granada Relocation Center (later called Amache) in southeastern Colorado, where they remained until 1945.

After the war, the family moved to Denver. Ben, Susan, and their eldest children found work and collectively contributed to buying a house at 28th Avenue and Gaylord Street. The family now included two more children, Jim and Jane, born while the Okubos were incarcerated at Granada. Ben returned to his previous line of work: that of a grocer. In 1950, he purchased a store at the corner of 28th Avenue and York Street — 2301 E. 28th Ave. — and opened Ben’s Super Market.

Though Ben sold the store and he and Susan returned to Los Angeles in 1961, the Okubo family is a fondly remembered part of the community. Even after the Okubos sold the store, the name remained, and with each owner Ben’s Super Market continued to provide the neighborhood with access to food as well as a sense of place and community until 2020.

Recently the space sold once again and is currently home to Ephemeral Rotating Taproom. In a nod to the space’s long history, the taproom sells local and hyperlocal products, as well as a cooler of locally brewed beers. The sign that advertised Ben’s Supermarket is currently part of the taproom décor and continues to keep the memory of the longtime name of the building alive.

Action

In July of 2024 Historic Denver installed an historic plaque in the front of the home.

Check out these links for more information about the sign’s installation:

https://denverite.com/2024/07/25/new-historic-denver-plaques-honor-potential-greeley-saint-camp-amache-survivor/

https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/historic-marker-denver-recognize-julia-greeley/