Second Lady visits military families at Kadena

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Corey Pettis
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, visited Kadena July 23 to show support for military families and spread awareness for the Joining Forces Initiative.

She stopped in at the Kadena USO Block Party, after traveling around Indo-Asia-Pacific countries promoting educational opportunities and economic empowerment for women. During Biden's USO visit, she spoke about her initiative to support better educational opportunities and employment resources for military beneficiaries.

Joining Forces is an initiative designed to aid service members, veterans, and their families by encouraging private sectors to provide them the tools needed to succeed throughout their military career and retirements. 

"With the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan winding down," Biden said, "it's easy for most Americans to forget that we have men and women serving overseas along with their families. That's one of the reasons Michelle Obama and I started Joining Forces -- to give all Americans an opportunity to step up and show their support for military and their families."

Since JFI began in 2011, Biden has encouraged business owners to hire military spouses and challenged governors to pass laws to streamline licensing for service members and veterans.

She also recognized a USO volunteer, Niki Reed, and presented her with the Gold Presidential Service Award for volunteering more than 1,200 hours for USO activities.

"She (Biden) is a strong and vocal supporter of our service members and military families," Reed said.

Before leaving, Biden interacted with the crowd, shaking hands and taking pictures, and expressed her thanks to the service members and their families who make sacrifices for their country on a daily basis.

Once she leaves Kadena, Biden will continue her tour around the region before returning to Washington, D.C.

For more information about Joining Forces, visit https://www.whitehouse.gov/joiningforces.