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Baltimore
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5th National Reunion
Baltimore, MD
June 21-24, 2007
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They came - they saw - they conquered! Organized and led by Lydia Crooks, Team Tohoku took on the project of engineering our Fifth Annual National Reunion this year and performed flawlessly. Those nearly 200 attendees will remember it as a well-planned, well-executed spectacular that took the bar to a whole new level. Our sincerest thanks to all of you who contributed toward making our visit to Baltimore a time we'll long remember fondly.
As with previous reunions, we met with friends - some old, some new - celebrating our common bond of past contributions to The Mission. If you were fortunate enough to have been part of it, we appreciate your presence and your having participated in this memorable event. If you weren't able to make it, we sincerely hope you'll be able to join us in future years, where ever we may meet.
We consider the Baltimore Reunion a stunning success, and we'll let the folowing photos validate that statement.
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180 files, last one added on Oct 03, 2010
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Colorado Springs
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4th National Reunion
Colorado Springs, CO
June 22-25, 2006
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The Misawans travelled back across the Mississippi to visit Colorado Springs, site of the 2006 National Reunion. Colorado Springs not only made it much easier for those who lived west of the Mississippi to attend one of our reunions, it offered many interesting attractions for those who had never been there.
The offer to host this year's reunion in Colorado Springs was actually made by a member who moved out of town before the reunion, but Danny Russell stepped up to the plate and offered to make it happen. And, what a great job he did. With a little help from his friends, he put together an outstanding affair that will be long remembered by its attendees.
One of the major highlights of our visit to Colorado Springs was a tour of Cheyenne Mountain, home of the NORAD Command Center. Each attendee had to be documented and cleared by NORAD ahead of time to be admitted into the highly secure area. Don't expect to see any photos here of what we saw there - there were no cameras allowed.
As was the case in Chattanooga in 2005, we experienced another strong turnout from the family unit this year - spouses, children and grandchildren. We definitely consider this a favorable trend and will continue to nurture it.
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106 files, last one added on Oct 02, 2010
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Chattanooga
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3rd National Reunion
Chattanooga, Tennessee
June 2-5, 2005
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The Misawans are on the move. We launched our first national reunion in Biloxi, MS in 2003, then crossed the Mississippi and went beyond the Rockies the following year, all the way to Las Vegas, NV.
It was during the Las Vegas Reunion that Chief Wayne Babb addressed the attendees with a proposal to convene the following year in his home town of Chattanooga, TN for our 3rd reunion, and even offered to ramrod the entire affair! It was an offer we just couldn't refuse. Wayne enlisted wife Fran to help make it happen, and the two of them together delivered results beyond anyone's expectations.
Chatanooga is a town large enough to accommodate most anyone's wants and needs, but not so large as to be cold or unfriendly. Southern hospitality is indeed alive and well here. The town is loaded with charm, has a rich history, and offers a plethora of interesting places to visit. Our home base was the well-known and architecturally exquisite Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel where our group was graciously received and treated royally.
Once again, reunion attendance increased over the previous year - this time, by about 40%. And this year, even more veterans elected to bring their partners and families to join in the activities. Our reunions have truly become family affairs.
One of the highlights of this year's reunion was staging our banquet aboard the Southern Belle Riverboat as it cruised the Tennessee River - a fascinating and memorable experience that was enjoyed and will long be remembered by all who attended. The food was excellent and the scenery was breathtaking.
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105 files, last one added on Sep 22, 2010
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Las Vegas
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2nd National Reunion
Las Vegas, Nevada
May 13-15, 2004
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In 2003, our first national reunion took place in Biloxi, Mississippi. For many of us, that was a "first blush" - our first time attending a military reunion. The experience taught us that reunions were something we wanted to continue. They provide us the opportunity to re-unite with old comrades, meet new friends, and recall the job we did and the times we experienced as young warriors.
This year, the reunion was to move west to provide easier access to those beyond the Mississippi. A crack team of three came together and volunteered to arrange for the event to take place in Las Vegas. They engineered the details perfectly and seamlessly.
Las Vegas brought face-to-face many who knew one another only through interaction on the Internet. And, there were those who were together again for the first time in years - some who had not seen one another in over three or even four decades! There were smiles and hugs and cheers and tears, but all were greatful their paths had crossed at least one more time.
The most notable difference between the Biloxi and the Las Vegas Reunions was the dramatic increase this year in the number of spouses who attended. Their presence significantly changed the dynamics of the reunion, and they seemed to recognize a common bond amongst themselves - that they belonged to this family that had served together in Misawa.
There's already a dialogue underway concerning the 2005 reunion. The current target appears to be Chattanooga, Tennessee, and many have already penciled late May/June in on their calendar. Wherever it happens, we'll be together again - this family that represents a mission spanning over 50 years.
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114 files, last one added on Sep 23, 2010
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Biloxi
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1st National Reunion
Biloxi, Mississippi
May 15-18, 2003
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We discussed it - we debated it - we planned it - we did it!
After literally months of working on the concept and hammering out countless details, it began to take shape and finally gelled into one of the most exciting gatherings of old comrades and new friends that any one of us could imagine.
USAFSS Veterans from all over the country punched holes in their schedules and came from near and far to a spot on the Gulf of Mexico to shake hands, share hugs, and remember those times we spent together so very long ago halfway around the world on the soil of a onetime mortal enemy - in Misawa, Japan.
We met old friends and made many new ones. Although most of us knew one another well from daily interaction on the Misawa website, many of us had never before met in person - until Biloxi. Finally meeting in person those whom you already knew so well was a strange and wonderous experience, but nonetheless satisfying and gratifying. Thanks to those who engineered the event, the Biloxi Reunion executed flawlessly.
We'll pause to savor the time we shared there - to remember and smile. But soon, we'll turn our attention toward the next reunion - the next opportunity to gather with those who now mean so much more to us - to gather with Family.
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83 files, last one added on Sep 21, 2010
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| 1464 files in 18 albums and 6 categories with 4 comments viewed 271240 times |
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