Sota Shinohara, second from right, a seventh grader from the city of Sagamihara, poses for a photo with other American and Japanese students May 31 at the bowling center on Camp Zama, Japan.
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CAMP ZAMA, JAPAN – U.S. Army Garrison Japan invited local students from Sagamihara City, which is adjacent to Camp Zama, to tour the installation, learn about its mission, and interact with the American youths May 31.
Col. Marcus Hunter, USAG Japan commander, welcomed 15 Japanese students at the bowling center and said the engagement was a great opportunity to provide the guests insight into the Army and American community at Camp Zama and help build relationships between future leaders of the U.S. and Japan over the long term.
“It helps us have a greater understanding of one another as neighbors and to live, work and grow together as a community,” Hunter said.
Members of the Sagamihara Junior High School council receive a briefing on the mission of U.S. Army Garrison Japan May 31 at Kizuna Hall on Camp Zama, Japan.
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Nobuhiro Harashima, a member of Junior Chamber International – Sagamihara, who is also a chairperson for the Next Generation of Leaders Development, said the visit to Camp Zama offered great value for the junior high students.
“We want our local students to learn about the adjacent installation as future leaders, interact with American students their own age, and broaden their horizons in an effort to better the city in which they live,” Harashima said.
Harashima was pleased to see the participating students seemed very interested in the tour and asked many questions during their visit, he said.
“This is the first step in getting to know each other and understanding that we are partners in building the city of Sagamihara through coexistence and co-prosperity,” Harashima said. “We’d like to continue to build a strong partnership through cultural exchanges like these.”
Col. Marcus Hunter, second from right, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Japan commander, welcomes Japanese students and members of Junio Chamber International – Sagamihara at the bowling center May 31 at Camp Zama, Japan.
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Sota Shinohara, a seventh grader from Sagamihara, said he was eager to experience his first visit to a U.S. military installation to learn about a place to which he would not normally have access.
After learning there are children on the installation from elementary through high school, including those his age, Shinohara likened Camp Zama to a small American city. Everyone he saw seemed happy and comfortable, as if they were living in America, he said.
“I had no idea that Camp Zama was actually [like] a town that had everything,” Shinohara said. “Seeing is believing!”
Shinohara said he hopes other local students like him will have an opportunity to experience and learn about the installation in the future.
