Deployed Airmen experience local tradition

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Oshawn Jefferson
  • 3rd Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
GWANGJU AIR BASE, South Korea (AFPN) --  Airmen deployed to the 3rd Air Expeditionary Group here experienced a South Korean tradition Sept. 28 that is more than 2,000 years old.

Every year during the harvest season when the moon is full, South Koreans celebrate a holiday similar to the American Thanksgiving called Chu Sok or Harvest Moon Festival. They travel to ancestral burial sites and gather with family and friends to pay respects to their ancestors.

Airmen had a chance to participate in a traditional ceremony honoring the ancestors, eat a traditional Chu Sok meal and play a board game called Yout.

“It was an honor to have the men and women of the 3rd AEG join us during one of our most sacred holidays,” said South Korean air force Brig. Gen. Young Woo Kwon, 1st Fighter Wing commander. “We were able to share a part of our heritage with our U.S. counterparts and continue the positive relationship we share with them.”

One similarity between Chu Sok and Thanksgiving is that they involve cooking and eating with family and friends.

“Getting a chance to participate in and see another country’s cultures and traditions was truly a great learning experience,” said Senior Airman Donald LeBeauf, 3rd Air Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron aerospace ground equipment craftsman.

At the event, South Korean airmen gave traditional masks to the Americans.

“We wanted to give the members of the 3rd AEG something so they could remember this for a long time,” said South Korean air force Lt. Young Je Kim, 1st FW liaison officer.