18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

The 18th Munitions Squadron munitions storage area, spans an estimated 164-acres of land on Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. The 18th MUNS MSA houses both a sacred Okinawan site and munitions for the Pacific region. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

A monument awaits visitors at the 18th Munitions Squadron munitions storage area at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. The 18th MUNS MSA is home to over 30 shrines and monuments. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

Local community members clear a pathway to a shrine at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. The members arrived at the munitions storage area before visitors to clear pathways and debris from shrines, making them more accessible. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

A red tag shows the path at the 18th Munitions Squadron munitions storage area at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. 18th MUNS personnel use the tags to mark pathways through the jungle to shrines. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

Local community members are escorted through Baker Gate at the 18th Munitions Squadron munitions storage area at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. 18th MUNS have not been able to sponsor community members onto Kadena since 2019, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

A local woman and her family prepare offerings to a family shrine on Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. Local Okinawans provide offerings in the form of food, beer and liquor to shrines of ancestors during a period of traditional remembrance called Shi-Mi. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

A local family prepares food at a shrine on Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. Local Okinawans provide ancestral shrines with food including tempura, rafute (pork), fried tofu and other delicacies. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

A local family prays at a family shrine at Kadena Air Base, Japan, April 10, 2022. The 18th Munitions Squadron invites local Okinawans onto the munitions storage area in an effort to cultivate strong relations with host nation allies. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Gary Hilton)

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18th MUNS hosts local community to pray at monuments

Published April 14, 2022
By Senior Airman Gary Hilton
18th Wing Public Affairs

KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --