Families celebrate reading all summer

Photo By Lance Cpl. Triton Lai | Families enter in a raffle during a Summer Reading Party hosted by Marine and Family Programs at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, August 7, 2019. The party was held to celebrate all of the reading the children accomplished over the span of six weeks. The party included a raffle giveaway, live music, food and drinks. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Triton Lai)  

MCAS IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JAPAN

08.09.2019

Story by Pfc. Triton Lai 

Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

Marine and Family Programs hosted a Summer Reading Party to congratulate the children who have spent their summer reading at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Iwakuni, August 7, 2019.

The party included food, drinks, games for kids to play and a raffle giveaway. There was also live music by Kanon Yasukuza, a violinist from the Hatsukaichi Junior String Orchestra and the Hatsukaichi Peace Orchestra.

“The party is celebrating support for the library and creating some fun for the children while also teaching literacy,” said Rachel Arizaga, supervisory librarian with Marine and Family Programs.

The party was the final event of a six week long summer full of reading. The 638 readers who enrolled in the program earned prizes and certificates for reading for 431,887 minutes, which is a total of 10 months or 299 days.

Volunteers helped set up the party and interacted with the children. One of the volunteers was U.S. Marine Corps Pfc. Gaige Brown, an aviation maintenance data specialist with Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron (MALS) 12.

“I enjoyed spending time with the children and hearing the violinist play and seeing the kids dance, it reminded me of when I was young,” said Brown.

The event ended with a raffle giveaway to all age groups who enrolled: adults, teens, kids, pre-schoolers, infants and toddlers.

• Date Taken: 08.09.2019
• Date Posted: 08.09.2019 04:29
• Story ID: 335255
• Location: MCAS IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JP