{"id":214711,"date":"2024-07-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=214711"},"modified":"2024-07-02T04:13:36","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T04:13:36","slug":"camp-zama-shares-independence-day-celebration-with-thousands-of-japanese-visitors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=214711","title":{"rendered":"Camp Zama shares Independence Day celebration with thousands of Japanese visitors"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n A young girl poses for a photo while inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter on display during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including military static displays, children\u2019s games, fireworks and live music.
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\n Children pose for a photo with 35th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion Soldiers during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. The open-post event had plenty of food and entertainment including military static displays, children\u2019s games, fireworks and live music.
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\n A visitor poses for a photo inside a light medium tactical vehicle during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. The open-post event had plenty of food and entertainment including military static displays, children\u2019s games, fireworks and live music.
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\n Children paddle toy boats during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including children\u2019s games, military static displays, fireworks and live music.
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\n A group of children slide down an inflatable bounce castle during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including children\u2019s games, military static displays, fireworks and live music.
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\n A family enjoys one of the children’s games offered during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including children\u2019s activities, military static displays, fireworks and live music.
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CAMP ZAMA, Japan \u2013 More than 16,000 people celebrated America\u2019s Independence Day with a daylong event full of memories and festivities here Saturday.<\/p>\n

One of Camp Zama\u2019s largest events, the celebration had plenty of food and entertainment including children\u2019s games, fireworks, live music, and the U.S. Army Japan Band\u2019s final open-post performance.<\/p>\n

Dozens of U.S. Army Garrison Japan personnel and partners also planned and coordinated behind the scenes and provided security and medical response to ensure visitors safely enjoyed themselves.<\/p>\n

Col. Marcus Hunter, garrison commander, said the teamwork allowed the installation to successfully open its gates and celebrate with thousands of neighbors from the local community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s awesome to see year after year the incredible effort by the entire team and the entire community to prepare for and then be able to put on a real fun party for everyone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Hunter said events like these can dispel misconceptions visitors may have about the U.S. Army, as they get to interact with Soldiers and watch them working with Japanese counterparts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis might be the first time that [some] people have ever been on our base, though there are many that have been able to come several times,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd so, being able to open the base and share in our culture, in our celebrations, is one way that I think we can help build and strengthen friendships.\u201d<\/p>\n

As visitors dealt with high temperatures and humidity, Sgt. Jefferson Moreira, a health care specialist for U.S. Army Medical Department Activity-Japan, supported the medical response tents that were set up at Yano Sports Field.<\/p>\n

Moreira and others, including medical teams from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force and nearby cities, assisted with any medical issues that arose, which were mainly minor heat-related cases. The garrison also installed water misting systems to help keep the crowd cool.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople sometimes wait too long in the lines, and they don\u2019t have time to drink [water] in the heat,\u201d he said, \u201cso we need to make sure that we have those medical assets available.\u201d<\/p>\n

With so much expertise at the event, the sergeant said medical support personnel also had the chance to share their knowledge and best practices with each other.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe like the cooperation that we have with our counterparts,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve been able to learn from them, and they\u2019ve been able to learn from us.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n U.S. military members and Japanese counterparts participate in a \u201cSalute to the Nation\u201d ceremony during the Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024.
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\n More than 16,000 people attended the Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. The open-post event had plenty of food and entertainment including military static displays, children\u2019s games, fireworks and live music.
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\n Col. Marcus Hunter, center, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Japan, and Zama City Mayor Mito Sato, left, meet with members of the U.S. Army Japan Band before their performance at an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. The event marked the final open-post performance by the band, which will inactivate this summer.
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\n A large audience listens to the U.S. Army Japan Band as it performs in its final open-post event during the Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024.
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\n Spectators watch a fireworks display that capped off an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including military static displays, children\u2019s games, fireworks and live music.
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Standing near a long line of Japanese guests waiting to buy American meals at the Exchange food court, Sgt. Charles Magee, assigned to the 311th Military Intelligence Battalion, chatted with a group of friends.<\/p>\n

Magee thought the idea of welcoming visitors onto the installation was beneficial so they can enjoy the atmosphere and maybe speak with community members here.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a good way to show that we\u2019re here as friends,\u201d he said of the Army\u2019s presence in Japan. \u201cI love being able to experience their culture every time I go off post, so I think it\u2019s nice to let them come on base and see our culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

Madison Reynolds, the spouse of another 311th MI Bn. Soldier, said she brought her two kids to the celebration for them to play on the inflatable bounce castles and try out the other children\u2019s activities.<\/p>\n

Unlike other Independence Day events in the United States, Reynolds said it was also interesting to witness the excitement of Japanese visitors coming onto the post for this event.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody gets together, and you get to meet new people,\u201d she said of the open-post event. \u201cIt\u2019s always fun to get to see how [the visitors] see us and what they\u2019re excited for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back at the sports field, where much of the festivities took place, Sayaka Fujita and her 9-year-old son, Kota, stood in the crowd waiting for the USARJ Band to perform.<\/p>\n

Fujita, who lives in nearby Sagamihara City, said the best thing about the celebration was listening to all the live music. For Kota, he said his favorite part of the day was eating slices of pizza.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m always looking forward to this event every year,\u201d Sayaka said, \u201cso that\u2019s why I wanted us to come again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before the fireworks show, a \u201cSalute to the Nation\u201d ceremony was also held with U.S. military members and Japanese counterparts carrying flags representing the 50 states and six American territories and minor outlying islands.<\/p>\n

Tomodachi Avenue was lined with visitors as the flag bearers marched by in formation as part of the patriotic display in honor of America\u2019s independence.<\/p>\n

The USARJ Band, which performed alongside musicians from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, then played again to the sound of fireworks for the last time before the unit inactivates this summer.<\/p>\n

Sgt. 1st Class Todd Borges, a trumpet player, said he was thankful for the opportunity to help strengthen the bonds between the U.S. Army and the Japanese people during the band\u2019s concerts around the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was something that I hadn\u2019t really experienced in other bands before,\u201d he said, \u201cso to experience that here in the twilight of my career was really amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the last firework lit up the sky, a crowd of spectators huddled around the band to listen to their final song, \u201cIt\u2019s Time to Say Goodbye\u201d \u2013 a bittersweet ending to the celebration.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty surreal to think that this is the last time that we\u2019re performing here,\u201d Borges said, \u201cbut it does give me a moment to pause and reflect on all of the amazing connections we made.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related links:<\/strong><\/p>\n

U.S. Army Garrison Japan news<\/a><\/p>\n

USAG Japan official website<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 A young girl poses for a photo while inside a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter on display during an Independence Day celebration at Camp Zama, Japan, June 29, 2024. More than 16,000 people attended the daylong event that had plenty of food and entertainment including military static […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":214713,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-214711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=214711"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214711\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":214725,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214711\/revisions\/214725"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/214713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=214711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=214711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=214711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}