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CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — More than 20 representatives from regional businesses took part in a behind-the-scenes look at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton during a tour on May 1, 2025, gaining insight into the base’s facilities, history, and role in national defense.
Organized through a strategic partnership between Camp Pendleton and Visit Oceanside, the tour provided visitors with an authentic understanding of military life.
“We're just as much a part of the community and want to be involved with the community for the greater good of everybody,” said Daniel M. Whitley, community plans and liaison officer, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
The day began at the Pacific Views Event Center before continuing to the historic Santa Margarita Ranch House, a 19th-century adobe structure with roots tracing back to the Mexican land grant era. Once a private residence and now a National Historic Site, the Ranch House offered guests a vivid lens into the region’s transformation and the base’s evolution since its establishment in 1942.
Throughout the tour, base historians and guides emphasized the installation’s dual identity: a rigorous training ground for the nation’s warfighters and a steward of history and community partnerships.
The collaboration between Camp Pendleton and Visit Oceanside reflects a growing movement among military bases to enhance community outreach through educational initiatives. By serving as a liaison between the Marine Corps and the local business sector, this effort aims to enhance quality-of-life opportunities for military personnel throughout the installation’s surrounding communities while helping to humanize military service.
"My goal is to make sure the military and veteran community has a voice in projects and development going on in Oceanside, so that our voice is heard,” said Whitley.
For Camp Pendleton, the benefits are equally clear. These tours demonstrate its commitment to transparency, community engagement, and responsible stewardship.
As military installations increasingly look beyond the fence line to connect with their surrounding communities, initiatives like this one provide a compelling blueprint for balancing mission readiness with meaningful civic connection.
(U.S. Marine Corps story by Sgt. Patrick King)
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| Date Taken: | 05.01.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.22.2025 19:28 |
| Story ID: | 498772 |
| Location: | CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 11 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Camp Pendleton Tour Builds Bridges Between Base and Local Community, by Sgt Patrick King, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
