Sendai students meet Airmen who provided relief during Operation Tomodachi

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Lauren Main
  • 15th Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii (AFNS) --  Twenty-four students from Sendai Ikuei Gakuen High School visited here June 24, while in Hawaii studying at I-Lion Hawaii School.

The students are continuing their education and learning English while their homes and schools are being rebuilt in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Sendai, Japan.

Accompanied by four of their teachers from Sendai, the girls, ages 16 and 17, took a field trip here to visit numerous Air Force units around the installation, beginning with a greeting from the 15th Wing vice commander and command chief.

Later in the day, the students explored a C-17 Globemaster III and met the Airmen who transported relief supplies to Japan during Operation Tomodachi.

"I was excited to meet the crew members," one student said. "I ate the food that the United States gave to us (after the earthquake), so it was nice to finally know who it came from."

Other students made similar comments, and said they were grateful to the crew and for everything the Air Force and the U.S. government did for them during that critical period, now marked as one of the largest natural disasters to impact the Pacific.

"It was great to see the faces of the people I'd helped," said Capt. Nathaniel Amidon, a C-17 pilot with the 535th Air Squadron. "It was also good to see that they were in such high spirits and that they were so appreciative of the work the 15th Wing had done. It made me very proud of my service."

After clambering around the flight deck and the cargo bay of the C-17, the students and teachers gathered for a group photo in front of the aircraft with a large banner that read, "Arigatou Hawaii," which translates to "Thank you, Hawaii."

The students were also treated to a MWD demonstration. The girls took many pictures of the action and clapped for each of the dogs as they performed.

"It was very meaningful to us to be able to brighten their day," said Lt. Col. Michael Gimbrone, the 647th Security Forces commander. "These girls' lives have been so severely impacted by the devastation, so being able to do something for them was nice. Hopefully it gave them a spark of hope for their future. And maybe, at least for the time they were with us, it gave them a chance to forget about whatever is going on in their personal lives and focus on something enjoyable."

The students ended their day in true Hawaiian style: listening and dancing to acoustic island music performed by members of the Pacific Air Forces Band. The three-man band, "Small Kine," performed a few more-popular songs in addition to the island music after receiving a unanimous request for an encore. And after some determined persuasion by the band, the girls were up on their feet and dancing.

"The girls had a great time," said Hiroko Schyvincht, a teacher and office manager with ILHA, who translated for the students. "I'm listening to their conversations, and from the sounds of things, they had a great day. It will be something they never forget."