Photo By Staff Sgt. Janessa Dugan | Jasen Moreno sings during a concert April 9 during the annual Foster Festival aboard...... read more read more
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Okinawa residents and service members poured into Camp Foster’s gate for the annual Foster Festival April 9-10 on Camp Foster.
The annual festival brought the community together through food, fun, fellowship and entertainment.
Families enjoyed food, drinks and games from dozens of vendors that lined the walkways of the Camp Foster flea market.
“The festival was a good time for Okinawa residents and Marines to come together because the attractions were things that people from all cultural backgrounds can enjoy,” said Cpl. Erick Marinquezada, a military policeman with the Provost Marshal’s Office, Headquarters and Support Battalion, Marine Corps Installations Pacific-Marine Corps Base Camp Butler, Japan. “The cultures are different, but the love of food, fun and entertainment is universal."
Live music and the aromas of a variety of foods filled the air as attendees enjoyed live performances by local entertainers.
The two-day event gather more than 16,840 guests, according to the MCCS special events office.
The entertainment continued throughout the day, varying from Okinawan dance performances, a clown, taiko drum performances and live bands.
As the sun set, guests crowded around the stage as the headlining band, Drowning Pool, entered the stage.
The festival gives service members a meaningful event to look forward to because it appeals to their interests and pastimes outside of the Marine Corps, according to Sgt. Blake Thompson, a hydraulics mechanic with Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 36, Marine Aircraft Group 36, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, III Marine Expeditionary Force.
“One of the things I’ve been looking forward to the most is the Drowning Pool concert,” said Thompson, an Ocala, Florida, native. “I’m a drummer myself and I’ve been listening to them since I was in middle school. It means a lot that they are here performing live for us, especially while we are out here on Okinawa and can’t attend a lot of the concerts taking place in the U.S.”
Drowning Pool performed its final song and audience members cheered and thanked the band for the performance and a select 35 audience members filed backstage to take photos with the band and receive autographed photos.
“The diversity of the performances provided everyone with a taste of new experiences and familiar ones,” said Thompson. “This event gives everyone the opportunity to both appreciate each other’s differences and enjoy similar interests. It’s a hard thing to do out here, especially with the language barrier, but this is an important step in our friendship with our host nation.”
For more information on this event and upcoming events, visit: www.mccsokinawa.com.
| Date Taken: | 04.08.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 04.13.2016 20:02 |
| Story ID: | 194968 |
| Location: | CAMP FOSTER, OKINAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 117 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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