Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Timothy Schumaker | 151208-N-UK306-079 JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Dec. 8, 2015) World Wrestling Entertainment...... read more read more
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Story by MC2 Timothy Schumaker
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The bright red, white and blue lights, booming pyrotechnics, thumping music and monster displays all came together to set the scene for what was to be a boldly patriotic display of appreciation from the largest wrestling company in the world.
The Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena hosted the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Tribute to the Troops show on Dec. 9. The 13th annual salute to the United States armed forces proved to be an action-packed evening full of wrestling, music, comedy and fireworks.
The evening’s festivities featured appearances from comedian Howie Mandel as well as the band Train. Wrestlers, such as Jack Swagger, came out with American flags waving to the crowd’s cheers.
“It was a lot of fun,” said Aviation Electrician’s Mate 1st Class William Winistorfer, assigned to the "Airwolves" of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 40. “The crowd was going nuts and chanting 'USA'; there was a lot of pageantry. We didn’t regret taking advantage of the free tickets.”
Among the many prominent Superstars and Divas that performed, the show featured current WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day, a trio consisting of Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E Langston. Kingston expressed a sense of pride and gratitude toward the service members they met and entertained.
“The purpose of this is quite simple,” said Kingston. “It’s a time where we get to show gratitude to the troops all over the world. It’s one of the greatest things that we do. We get to go face-to-face with the people that fight for our freedom.”
Prior to the event itself, WWE athletes were given guided tours of Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Naval Station Mayport and Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay to meet and greet with service members, take pictures and sign autographs.
“It was awesome,” said Winistorfer. “The Divas came out here and toured our helicopters and took pictures with us. They were excited about the experience and what we were doing. Everyone was just enjoying the spectacle.”
The show weaved in videotaped messages of thanks from celebrities such as Seth Meyers, Pharrell Williams and Adam Levine, among many others.
The annual event has been held in December during the holiday season since 2003, and had previously entertained U.S. armed forces members serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Kingston has been on the road with WWE since 2008 and has done “Tribute” every year since. As a father of a 2-year-old son, he says he’s gained perspective meeting and interacting with service members that are out there protecting his family.
“To know that these people are out there risking their lives so that my family can live ours makes it very humbling for us to be able to put on this show for them,” said Kingston. “It’s the least that we can do to show our gratitude.”
Tribute to the Troops will air during WWE Week on USA Network on Wednesday, Dec. 23 from 8-10 p.m. ET.
| Date Taken: | 12.08.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 12.09.2015 16:09 |
| Story ID: | 184017 |
| Location: | JACKSONVILLE, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 131 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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