The III Marine Expeditionary Force Band will be performing Aug. 12 during the 61st Kesennuma Port Festival in Kesennuma City, located on the northeastern coast of mainland Japan in the Miyagi Prefecture.
The band, invited by the festival's organizing committee, will be one of more than ten groups performing as part of the festival's parade. Other groups include the Ground Self-Defense Force Northeastern Army Band and several groups from the area around Kesennuma.
The area was struck by the devastating Great East Japan Earthquake and a subsequent tsunami March 11, 2011. At that time, Okinawa-based Marines deployed to mainland Japan to offer assistance to the Government of Japan and to provide vital resources to assist recovery efforts.
Japanese citizens and local leaders developed a close relationship with III MEF Marines and sailors as a result of the bilateral efforts and that relationship has continued with several visits conducted between the area and Okinawa.
Since the disaster, III MEF/MCIPAC leadership has visited leaders and citizens in the region several times and families from Oshima Island, which is located in Miyagi Prefecture, visited Okinawa as part of the Homestay Program. The program, which took place in the summer of last year, brought 25 children to Okinawa to participate in a cultural exchange and to provide emotional relief to those affected by the disaster. A similar cultural exchange will be happening again this fall.